


Hundred Miles an Hour

by Elocin000



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, ChanSoo - Freeform, M/M, Side Sebaek, because it's chansoo day yall, my first attempt at chansoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-12
Updated: 2020-06-12
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:55:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 20,597
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24674224
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elocin000/pseuds/Elocin000
Summary: Kyungsoo was a pining tree at first. Chanyeol tried his best. Baekhyun and his psychology shit. Misunderstandings ensued, and also lots of infinite feelings. College AU.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Oh Sehun, Do Kyungsoo | D.O/Park Chanyeol
Comments: 19
Kudos: 68





	Hundred Miles an Hour

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!! OMG. I'm really going to do this huh? It's chansoo day so might as well get on with it. This is my first chansoo fic, please be gentle with me you guys! TT
> 
> This was inspired by my obsession with Chanyeol's All of Me, while also wondering what might have been Kyungsoo's reaction to it. I had a phase with that. LOL. This was supposed to be a canon story?? But everything just went south and idk what happened anymore. LOL. Also, i just want to thank my friend, my chanyeol to my Kyungsoo, A!!! thank u for your input and suggestions to this fic. thank u for your enthusiasm when you first read it weeks ago and giving me a nudge to finally post this. love u!
> 
> Anyways, unbeta-ed chapter. Enjoy!
> 
> -El

If Kyungsoo would list all his regrets in his lifetime, this night would be one of them. He should have never caved-in to his best friend’s puppy look and constant pestering about his degrading social life and non-existent love life.

_ But Kyungja, aren’t you getting stuffy within these four walls of your dorm? _

_ You seriously need to get out. I worry about you, okay. Soon, you’ll drown from these circular thingies, and whatever that small machine in your desk is called. Aren’t you tired of seeing a screwdriver? Don’t you want to see another human being aside from me? _

_ Byun Baekhyun, that’s what you called a compressor, and I can’t believe you can’t even identify loose screws. I am an engineering major, of course, I’d have these around me. Don’t be so self-centered either. You’re not the only person I see. I have bad astigmatism but I am not blind. _

_ I am not talking in a literal sense you little - no, Kyungja please don’t glare at me, that’s not my point. What I mean is, you are stressed- _

_ No, don’t use your psychology shit on me- _

_ You’re lonely. _

_ To be honest, I am worried that you’re going to be like your machines, cold and inanimate. You are always surrounded by these things that can’t even talk back to you. You need a break from all of these. _

Kyungsoo would die first before he would admit out loud how those words had squarely hit a spot in his boring being. And maybe, that had been the trigger, right? That’s why he had agreed to go on this blasted blind date in the first place. He wouldn’t admit that he was really lonely and stressed, and Baekhyun had been right. He wouldn’t let it bleed through the impassiveness he had perfected over the years, and give Baekhyun the satisfaction. He had agreed on the pretense that he had just wanted to be left alone with his machines. Baekhyun still had a smug face when he left him in his room. Fuck his psychology shit.

But right now, all he wanted to do to Byun Baekhyun was to strangle the living daylights out of him first thing when he saw him.

Kyungsoo was waiting for an hour in a restaurant for his date to come. It had been one hour, and he was still sitting alone at the table.

He glared at the glass of water placed in front of him. Imagining that it was Baekhyun and he was on the receiving end of his death glare. He was the one who had set Kyungsoo up for this whole thing in the first place, assuring Kyungsoo that it would be an unforgettable night.

Yeah, unforgettable because he had been stood-up. He wouldn’t be here in the first place if not for his best friend. On a night like this, he was supposed to be secured under the blanket of his bed probably sleeping already, since he had managed to finish all his homework for that day.

He turned his head to the side. He was now staring at his blurry reflection on the tinted glass window. Even if it was blurry, he could see clear as a day how pathetic he was at the moment. He could see the outline of his sagged shoulder, his lips upturned, and the bags under his eyes that were more prominent that night. Loneliness was something he had barely acknowledged before, but now it felt like a huge chasm in his chest that was hard to ignore. Maybe he was really becoming a machine, huh? Because right now, he preferred to feel nothing rather than to feel this miserable. He decided to leave the place and call it a night.

A soft melody out of nowhere plucked his attention out from his cloudy thoughts. He stilled in his seat as he looked at the direction of where the melody had come from. A guy was sitting in front of the piano from not afar. His back was at Kyungsoo so he couldn’t see his face. Not that it mattered at the moment when Kyungsoo was caught up with how his long fingers were expertly flying over the keys, producing tunes after tunes that were strangely soothing.

And then the guy started to sing. There was a mic stand close to him. His voice reverberated throughout the restaurant.

He sang All of Me by John Legend.

And all Kyungsoo could do was stare at the guy’s broad back with his mouth hanging open and his eyes widening behind his black thick-rimmed eyeglasses.

His voice was baritone but there was also softness in it when he had hit the low note. He was no technical about his singing, but he was all emotion laid out in the open, letting the people know what the song was supposed to be about. And that was the thing about it, this singer knew how to tug your soul out from your body and shoved it back with a force that would knock your breath away. Kyungsoo was breathless. When the singer hit the high note with his raspy voice, Kyungsoo forgot to breathe altogether, lungs collapsing on itself, and heart beating wildly, wanting to claw its way out of his chest.

Then before Kyungsoo could tame his heart, and get his lungs to function correctly, the song ended. The singer stood up. Oh boy, he was tall. He turned around to face the crowd. The customers gave him a round of applause. The guy smiled, and a dimple appeared on his cheek. 

Kyungsoo continued to stare at him dumbly. His heart did another acrobatics before stuttering to a halt. Was he dead? Probably, and he was already in the afterlife. There was just no way that a guy as pretty as him existed in real life, right?

The pretty guy bowed down to the audience and left.

Kyungsoo followed him with his gaze as Pretty Guy made his way to the corner. He disappeared behind the steel door with an authorized personnel sign plastered on the door.

Kyungsoo looked back at the glass of water in front of him. He no longer felt like glaring at it. He couldn’t even imagine the glass as Baekhyun when all his brain could produce were mental images of Pretty Guy standing by the piano; his voice, his smile, and his long fingers over the keys.

Baekhyun was wrong on one thing, Kyungsoo could never be like his machines when he was still capable of feeling so much in one breath.

He put a hand over his pounding heart.

Despite this cosmic wave washing over him, for the first time that night, he felt lighter.

He smiled.

He finally settled on staying instead. He was no stranger to solitary. He preferred that way most of the time anyway. So he called a nearby waiter to order.

But first thing first, he gulped down the glass of water. He needed that.

As Kyungsoo waited for his order to come, his eyes were on the window, looking through it and observing the street outside. He was quietly humming to himself, and yes, to the tune of All of Me. It got stuck on his head and there’s no unsticking it for the time being. His cheek was propped on his elbow that was leaning on the table. He swayed his head slightly, he just didn’t know if it was because of the soft jazz playing in the background, or because of his own humming.

And then he saw another reflection appear on the window. Kyungsoo jerked his head to the side so fast that he almost gave himself a permanent neck injury.

Pretty Guy was standing by his table, smiling down at him. His dimple showed up again. That was when Kyungsoo had a proper look at him.

Oh god, he was really tall up close. Kyungsoo had to completely crane his neck to the side so he could gaze at his face. It wasn’t helping that he was sitting down. Kyungsoo also noticed that he had beautiful wide eyes, beautiful big ears, beautiful small nose, and beautiful thin lips. His jet-black hair was gelled up, his smooth and porcelain head was in full view. Kyungsoo was amazed really, on how this guy was breaking a record on the attractiveness chart effortlessly by just standing there.

Only then that it hit Kyungsoo that Pretty Guy was a fucking waiter there. Pretty Guy was only wearing a white button-down shirt tucked into his black slacks earlier when he had performed. But now there was an additional black apron wrapped around his waist. He held a tray with plates of food in it.

“Here’s your order.” Pretty Guy beamed at Kyungsoo. It was blinding. “Thank you for waiting.”

“This is your Kimchi Arabiatta Pasta, excellent choice by the way, highly recommended.” Pretty Guy put down a plate in front of Kyungsoo. “Here’s your Creme Brulee soup, your small Quattro Formaggio Pizza, and your glass of coke. Is your order complete?”

Kyungsoo could only blink up at him, had to prepare himself before speaking up, or else he’d probably choke on his own saliva. He took a breath. “Y-yeah, it is. . .”

Pretty Guy continued to beam at him, and Kyungsoo would prefer if he would stop smiling like that. It was bad for business if a guy was found dead inside the restaurant because of cardiac arrest. 

“Okay then.” Pretty Guy chirped. “Is there anything else you would like to add?”

“A pitcher of cold water.” Kyungsoo found himself saying. His lips were dry, and he needed a drink of water again.

“Okay. I’ll be right back with the water.” Pretty Guy smiled once again before leaving.

This time, a waitress brought the pitcher of water to him. Kyungsoo didn’t let his disappointment show. Instead, he bowed his head, said a polite thank you to the waitress, and continued eating. Pretty Guy must be busy with other customers. The restaurant was packed. He was lucky that he had come early and still had managed to find a vacant table. So, that little disappointment was not enough to dampen his mood. The food was actually great. He was enjoying it, and he didn’t mind coming back again  _ for  _ the food. Whoever his asshole date was, he had missed a ton by standing him up. The food and the place was a waste to miss!

After he had eaten and let his food digest properly in his stomach, he stood up to leave and pay for his food. He shrugged on his long brown coat over his black long sleeves, underneath the long sleeves was a white shirt buttoned up to his neck. He made his way to the cash register. 

A middle-aged woman was waiting behind the register. She also had an apron on but she was dressed casually unlike the other staff of the restaurant. She was smiling brightly at him, a smile that awfully reminded Kyungsoo of a certain waiter. He pulled out his wallet from the back pocket of his black jeans.

“Did you enjoy your food?” The woman asked amicably. She punched Kyungsoo’s order on the register to get the receipt.

“Ah, yes,” Kyungsoo said politely. “It was really delicious. Thank you. You have a nice place too, great ambiance.”

The woman beamed at him. “I’m glad you liked it.” Then she said the amount he was going to pay.

Kyungsoo opened his wallet but paused. He looked up again at the woman who continued to smile at him. The price, that didn’t sound right. There were prices on the menu so he had already mentally computed the amount he was going to pay. The price was a lot cheaper than his own computation. Unless his mathematical computation was deteriorating, which couldn’t happen because he was a future engineer who needed to have excellent skills in computation.

“I don’t think the price. . .” Kyungsoo tried to say.

“It’s discounted.” The woman answered as if reading Kyungsoo’s thoughts. “Promo.”

“Oh!” He briefly looked around, wondering if he had missed the promo signage plastered somewhere around. He pulled out the bills on his wallet and gave it to the woman.

“Thank you,” Kyungsoo added.

“No, thank you.” The woman gave him another smile. “Thank you so much.”

Kyungsoo was confused by the way the woman continued to smile at him as if there was something more on her smile that he should know about, and also the way she had thanked him profusely as if he had done something more aside from eating there.

“Thank you for coming and eating here.” She handed him back the change. “I hope you come back.”

“Oh, yeah, sure.” Kyungsoo jamb the money into his wallet and pocketed it. “I’ll definitely come back soon, the food is something to come back for.”

She only nodded. Kyungsoo bowed and turned around. He walked for the door.

“Chanyeol! Step out here if you don’t want to miss it.”

Kyungsoo pushed the door open and stepped out into the street. A Crisp and cold air of Autumn greeted him. He made his way to the sidewalk. He shoved his hands deeper into his coat’s pocket.

“H-hey, wait!”

Kyungsoo stopped walking and turned around. He froze. Pretty Guy stood in front of the entrance of the restaurant. There was still an apron around his waist.

Pretty Guy took a step forward to him. Kyungsoo was still frozen in place. His eyes were wide, and his face a bit flustered because of Pretty Guy’s attention to him.

“Uhm,” Pretty Guy started. He clasped and unclasped his fingers together as if he didn’t know what to do with his hands. 

Kyungsoo waited, holding his breath. Screw it. He wasn’t probably breathing again.

“Uh, I hope you had a nice night.” Pretty Guy finally said, looking at Kyungsoo bashfully and through his lashes.

Kyungsoo thought that Pretty Guy had no right to do that, to look even prettier than he already did. But all he could do was stare at him blankly because it was his default expression all the time no matter how much he wanted to burst inside.

“I mean...” Pretty Guy fumbled for his words. It was cute. “You looked alone and sad earlier, s-so I hope your night has turned out better…”

“Oh,” Kyungsoo breathed. So Pretty Guy had noticed, huh?

Pretty Guy stared at him.

Kyungsoo cleared his throat, tried to speak up confidently, and not to be a quivering mess. “Yeah, it has.”

“It has?” Pretty Guy tilted his head.

“My night has been better.”  _ Thanks to you.  _ Kyungsoo wisely chose not to add.

“Really?” Pretty Guy’s wide eyes lit up.

Kyungsoo nodded. “The food is great and the ambiance of your place is totally relaxing. It has totally uplifted my mood.”

“Wow, that’s great!” He bounced on his heels. He bit the inside of his cheek. “Then maybe, I hope you come back here, yeah? We still have lots on the menu that you should taste.”

Kyungsoo watched his giddy expression. They stood a few feet from each other. He debated if he should say it out loud. He wondered if Pretty Guy would be giddier than he already was if he heard what Kyungsoo wanted to say, just to see how a sun could rise up at night.

“Actually,” Kyungsoo spoke up, clenched hands hidden in the pockets of his coat. “The food and the place aren’t the only things that have been great…”

Pretty Guy paused. “Oh, what else then?”

“Your voice. It was nice to hear.” 

Pretty Guy looked taken aback.

Kyungsoo’s nails dug into his palms, willing himself to continue before he chickened out. “You have a great voice and the way you played the piano was…”  _ Breathtaking, exhilarating, majestic.  _ Instead, he tried to find another term that wouldn’t make him too creepy and weird if said out loud. He wanted to be neutral at the same time genuine. “-was truly skillful. You sang All of Me really nicely. Your song was beautiful.”  _ You are beautiful. _

“Oh..”

Kyungsoo wondered if he had said too much. He cursed internally. He cleared his throat. “Anyway-”

“I can sing again if you come back.”

Kyungsoo’s heart lurched. “Oh yeah, okay…”

Pretty Guy grinned at him.

It was truly a sunrise at twilight.

Kyungsoo turned, hiding his flushed face. He couldn’t embarrass himself more. He spoke up without looking at him. “I should go.”

“Yeah, okay, I’m sorry for keeping you! Be safe on your way.”

Kyungsoo braved one last smile at him. “Thank you. See you soon.” He hurriedly turned and walked away, praying that his face wasn’t that red, praying that his face was nonchalant enough to hide how much Pretty Guy could affect him with a single smile.

If Kyungsoo wasn’t drowning in the embarrassment of his mushed up feelings for a guy he had just met, if Kyungsoo just dared himself once more to stop and looked back, he would probably see it. The way Pretty Guy hugged the woman behind the counter so tightly. If Kyungsoo just turned around and stayed a little bit longer, he wouldn’t miss how Pretty Guy’s laughter rang out in the restaurant, euphoric and delighted.

“Kyungja, I’m really sorry. Do you want me to kneel for forgiveness here? I would do it in a heartbeat.”

Kyungsoo only stared blankly at Baekhyun from behind his glasses. He stood behind the counter of the coffee shop he was part-timing at. He wore a brown apron over a white polo shirt, buttoned all the way up, and his shirt was partnered with khaki pants - his uniform at the coffee shop. The last time they had seen each other was three days ago when Baekhyun had pestered him about this failed blind date.

Between their conflicting schedules due to the differences of their majors, days could pass by without a glimpse of hair from each other. They knew each other’s schedules by heart. So Baekhyun had chosen this moment to barge into his workplace and destroy the zen enveloping Kyungsoo.

“I just found out an hour ago about what happened to your supposed date last night.” Baekhyun tried to explain. “If I had known earlier, I would have called you immediately. I thought it was a success since I didn't hear from you last night and I didn't receive any death threats from you. I thought you were busy with him...”

Kyungsoo finally glared at him. He crossed his arms over his chest. Thankfully, the coffee shop was not crowded so he could spare his best friend some time while he begged for forgiveness.

He had opted not to call anyone, as if he had more than anyone he could call aside from Baekhyun. His voice would just betray his current state. He had been stood up on a date, but he had been happy and content when he had flopped down on his bed. He was fortunate enough not to have a roommate who would have seen that disgusting smile on his face he had tried and failed to wipe off. He might have or might have not belted out the All of Me in the shower room while wondering if Pretty Guy’s voice and his would harmonize well if they sang in a duet.

“But you don’t have to worry,” Baekhyun assured him.

Kyungsoo willed his mind to stay in the present, willed his lips not to twitch in an attempt to smile at the memory of last night.

“Sehun already took care of the bastard.” Baekhyun smiled, satisfied.

Kyungsoo frowned. “Who?”

“Ah, right. He’s my boyfriend as of last night.” His best friend said proudly.

Kyungsoo snorted. “Right, so you’re the one who had been busy last night, huh.”

“Don’t worry, Kyungja we’ll find you-”

“No,” Kyungsoo stressed the word, letting his best friend know that he was done with this.

“But-”

“I’m sparing you this time, Baek, don’t push it.”

“Okay.” Baekhyun pouted. He deflated on the other side of the counter.

“Now, please don’t interrupt me further with my work. Get out.” Kyungsoo smiled at him.

“No, you can’t kick me out! I’m going to order.” Baekhyun said. “I’m meeting my boyfriend here, and I’m going to introduce you to him. I thought we’re going on a double date soon.” He added wistfully.

Kyungsoo only rolled his eyes and proceeded to the cash register to process his best friend’s order. “What’s your order? The usual?”

“Yep.”

Kyungsoo pulled out a plastic cup from the stack to mark it; Dark mocha frappe with less whip cream and extra cinnamon on top. He accepted Baekhyun’s payment before preparing his order.

Later, Kyungsoo finally met Sehun. He was impressed. Baekhyun certainly knew how to pick a guy. Sehun ordered his drink too. He seemed nice. Though they didn’t have much time to talk more when there was a sudden influx of customers, and Kyungsoo was already occupied.

Much much later, when dawn had come and Kyungsoo had finished his shift, Baekhyun was still there. Proof of that was, Baekhyun poked his head from the door in the back office of the coffee shop. Kyungsoo had just finished changing into a black sweater and black hoodie. 

“Kyungja,” Baekhyun called.

“You’re not allowed here,” Kyungsoo said for the hundredth time. It wasn’t the first time that Baekhyun had by-passed the back office, and it wouldn’t probably be the last as long as he was working there.

Baekhyun ignored his comment and stepped inside. “You going home now? Sehun’s friends are coming. Do you want to come and hang out with us?”

Kyungsoo pulled a black baseball cap over his head and slung his backpack over his shoulder. “Sorry, I can’t. I have to rush to a hardware store to buy some of my materials for my project.”

Baekhyun pouted. “Fine. But next time, you really have to come to hang out with us, you understand?”

“Alright,” Kyungsoo sighed. “I’ll try next time.”

“No, you have to-”

“Come on, let’s head outside. Let me, at least, say goodbye to your boyfriend.” Kyungsoo distracted him by ushering his best friend out of the room by holding on his shoulders and heading out together.

Baekhyun seemed satisfied with this. He put his arm around Kyungsoo’s waist, while Kyungsoo put his arm over his shoulder. They walked through the narrow corridor that would lead them back to the shop.

“This is sad, we haven’t had time to hang out that much,” Baekhyun commented.

“Yeah, this is my fault,” Kyungsoo sighed again. “But my upcoming tests and practicals are killing me right now.”

“That’s right so you have to make it up to me-”

“What do you mean, we’re just even. Do I have to remind you what happened to me last night?”

Baekhyun pinched Kyungsoo’s waist. 

The latter yelped. “Hey!”

“You’re always mean!” His best friend pulled away from him when they reached the end of the corridor. 

Kyungsoo managed a smile.

“But seriously, we have to catch up soon, okay?” Baekhyun said. “I have lots of things to tell you, like about my amazing boyfriend.”

Kyungsoo frowned. “You’ve only been together last night. Are there really lots of things to talk about after that?”

“No, I’m going to tell you how I met him, and how I pinned for him for some time, and how we ended up in bed. I can also tell you how amazing he is on be-”

“I don’t need to know that.” Kyungsoo deadpanned. “I didn’t know that you had pinned for someone before.”

“Because Do Kyungsoo, you are always nowhere to be found. You’re always busy!”

“There you go, that’s the reason why.”

“Are we still even best friends?”

Kyungsoo snorted a laugh. “We’ll catch up soon. Let’s go back to your boyfriend, or he might have probably run to someone else if we keep him waiting.”

“Hey!”

“It’s a waste,” Sehun said when Kyungsoo had bid his farewell and told his reason for not being able to go with them. “We’ll hit the karaoke, and Baek mentioned you have a talent for singing.”

Kyungsoo smiled at the compliment and gave his best friend a pointed look. His singing was something he didn’t endorse that much. He didn’t even like singing for a crowd. “I don’t sing often actually.”

“Which was even more of a waste, I tell you, babe, he could have been an idol!” Baekhyun pointed a finger at him.

Kyungsoo only shook his head. 

Sehun laughed. “Well, maybe next time you’ll grace us with your voice and prove my boyfriend right?”

“Maybe.” Kyungsoo shrugged. “I always love to prove Baekhyun wrong.”

“Hey!”

Sehun burst out laughing once more. He looked at his boyfriend. “I like him, babe.”

“Yeah, so you two can gang up to bully me? Honestly, the betrayal in this place. I’m leaving.” Baekhyun feigned to walk away, but Sehun caught him by the waist when he walked past him.

Sehun pulled him closer to him and wrapped his arm around him. He was still laughing. “As far as I know, Kyungsoo is the one leaving, not you.”

Baekhyun smiled at that and leaned his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder.

“I should probably leave.” Kyungsoo decided. “My presence is now irrelevant.”

“Your presence will never be irrelevant to me but hold up! We should take a picture of us three before you leave!” Baekhyun pulled away from Sehun.

“Not now!” Kyungsoo protested. “I need to catch up on the hardware store before it closes! Maybe next time.”

“Fine!” Baekhyun relented. Then he hugged Kyungsoo. “Bye, Kyungja! Call me later, okay?”

“Yep.”

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Kyungsoo,” Sehun said. “Let’s hang out next time, okay?”

Kyungsoo nodded and waved one last goodbye to the couple before exiting. He readjusted his cap when he was in front of the coffee shop. Then he started to walk in one direction. His pace was fast, leaving the vicinity quickly.

If Kyungsoo had just agreed to take a picture with Baekhyun, if Baekhyun had just hugged Kyungsoo a little bit longer, if Kyungsoo had just turned his head a little bit to the side after adjusting his cap, and if his pace had been slower enough, their paths would have probably crossed. Kyungsoo would know how close he was to that person who had been in his mind since yesterday night.

Just right after Kyungsoo had left, two men entered the coffee shop and greeted the couple that Kyungsoo had left behind.

It wasn’t just Kyungsoo’s style, really. To act like a fool gazing longingly at the remnants and things that connected to someone he had just met for a short duration of time. He was the type who would knit-pick and dissect every fiber apart to know its worth. It was like, opening the lid cover of the machine first. Then he would remove the screws, the internal shell, plating, and then he would inspect the rod, the piston, the oil tube, and every single part to see if there was something wrong with it. That’s only when he would head for the main motor to inspect the problem in it. He was methodical and systematic.

But he was definitely doing the opposite as he stood across the street of Viva Polo, the restaurant he had just gone into yesterday. He watched the bustling of activity inside the restaurant. It was packed as usual at this kind of time. From his perspective, he could see the piano in the corner, vacant of the pianist he didn’t mind hearing play again. He wondered if Pretty Guy was actually there. He strained his eyes to look for a tall, lean guy with a bright smile. Kyungsoo was sure that he could identify that smile quickly from where he stood. It was always glowing.

See, this was the part that Kyungsoo had everything in a disarrayed state. His feet had dragged him here, even though it was three stations down from the hardware store he had come from. He was here, trying to find a face -borderline desperately among the sea of faces. It was as if he had gone straight to the main motor without checking the other components within and concluded that the entire machine was functioning in its best ability.

Was it really possible to feel something so immense in a span of a second, that you wouldn’t have time to step back and take a proper look at it and put an actual name to what you actually feel? But you know that it was something so consuming, and so strong, so raw that it was like a magnetic pull, always drawing you closer to that person?

Did simple crushes work like that?

Kyungsoo had already forgotten how crushes work. He had a boyfriend, freshman college, but that boyfriend was someone he had known since high school. The guy had confessed to him when they had gone to college together, and he had been someone that Kyungsoo was comfortable to be with. They had dated for a year, had fallen out of love afterward, and they had broken up. The end.

He had occasional hook-ups too in the past, but that was it, no strings attached.

And then, and then, this tall guy that had legs that could go on forever entered the picture just yesterday night, and Kyungsoo didn’t know anymore.

It felt like he was treading on new foreign territory. But even then, he felt like he would probably dive in headfirst into the ocean if asked for this guy.

Just to mock him even more, All of Me started blasting from the earbuds he was wearing. He immediately yanked the earphone out from his ears and shoved it into the front pocket of his hoodie. His hands remained in the pockets.

Alright, Kyungsoo decided that this was how crushes work. It was just a simple crush that would go away soon.

He left the place afterward.

It didn’t go away soon.

Kyungsoo was burning a hole in the thick textbook laid open in front of him. He occupied one of the tables in the university library. It had become his routine, if he wasn’t in the coffee shop for his part-time job, he would be here in the library. Their lessons had started to get complicated over time, harder to understand over the lectures. Maybe because he was already in his junior year. Soon, he would have his internships that would divide his time even more, and it would leave him no time to mull over his lessons. He couldn’t afford his grades to flunk when his scholarship was at risk.

But as of the moment, his brain was rejecting the words in the textbook because it was fully occupied with another thing.

Kyungsoo hadn’t come back to Viva Polo in two weeks after the night he had become a creep and stalked Pretty Guy, who hadn’t probably even been there. In Kyungsoo’s defense, two weeks had been hell for him. Between his part-time job in the coffee shop a few blocks from his university, and studying for upcoming handwritten and practical tests, there was just no time to visit. Besides, he had been buried elbow deep with a project he had to build from scratch and had barely submitted on time. He had even barely managed to hang out with Baekhyun over the period. Thankfully, his best friend had been occupied with his boyfriend to pester him with anything. Or else, he might really strangle his best friend with an excuse of being stressed.

So, he had an entirely valid reason for not showing up even though he had repeatedly expressed that he would come back soon. However, the point was, he had stated before that he would come back, right? And he hated backing down on his words, that was probably why it was bothering him so much, right? He bit his lip, contemplating. Well, his upcoming tests had dwindled down to two next week. His project had been submitted. All his practical tests were done.

He pushed up his sleeve to look at his wristwatch; forty-five minutes before five. he would probably be there a little bit after five, perhaps?

Kyungsoo closed his book and chucked it down into his backpack. He gathered his other things and put them into his bag too. He zipped it closed. He stood up and put on his white and black bomber jacket. He zipped it up to the middle. He slung his backpack over his shoulders and made his way out of the library.

Kyungsoo looked through the window of Viva Polo. There was barely a person inside that made him second-guessed if they were open for that day. He wasn’t exactly aware of their opening hours. Now, he was mildly annoyed with himself. He should have checked that first right before rushing here stupidly.

“Oh my god, you’re here!”

Kyungsoo jumped up in surprise, heart almost falling out. He put a hand on his chest. He whirled around.

Pretty Guy was standing next to him, beaming at him. There was a guitar case slung on his one shoulder and his backpack in another. He wore an oversized green hoodie, -Kyungsoo couldn’t believe that there was still a bigger size for his height, partnered with faded jeans. There was a black snapback on his head with its brim on the back of his head. Now that Kyungsoo was standing next to him, he hated the ridiculousness and the appeal of his height at the same time.

That was when the realization hit. Oh my god, that simple crush didn’t go away nor reduce to a smaller amount. Thank God, he was holding his chest. He gave his heart a silent pat to calm the fuck down because Pretty Guy still managed to take his breath away by just standing there.

“I’m so glad you came!” Pretty Guy rubbed the nape of his neck. “I thought that you would never come and you just became polite last time to say no.”

Kyungsoo’s hand over his chest settled in the front pocket of his jacket. It was okay. His heart calmed down a bit. He could survive this. He looked away, clearing his throat.

“I promised to come, I hate backing down on my word,” Kyungsoo said quietly.

There was a pregnant pause that there was only silence on Pretty Guy’s end. Kyungsoo glanced up at him. Pretty Guy stared at him.

Kyungsoo willed his face not to flush too much, not to show too much redness by how Pretty Guy was staring at him. Why did he look so serious? Did Kyungsoo say something wrong?

Then Pretty Guy smiled, his dimple showing up automatically. “I’m happy that you hate backing down on your word.”

“Uhm, yeah…”

“Let’s get inside?” Pretty Guy pointed his thumb in the direction of the door.

Kyungsoo nodded. He was about to walk when Pretty Guy held his wrist stopping him.

No. Kyungsoo denied in his head. There was no electric shock that came with his touch. There was no way that a body alone could produce that much static electricity.

Instead, he slowly looked at Pretty Guy with wide eyes.

“First thing first.” Pretty Guy said, “I don’t know your name.” He let go of his wrist.

“Oh,” Kyungsoo said. Right. It was about damn time to stop calling this guy, Pretty Guy. “My name is Do Kyungsoo.”

“Kyungsoo.” Pretty Guy tested his name.

Kyungsoo liked how he had said his name in that deep voice.

“It’s nice.” Pretty Guy decided. “My name is Park Chanyeol.”

“It’s nice to meet you, again, Chanyeol.” Kyungsoo also liked how Chanyeol’s name rolled on his tongue.

Chanyeol laughed. “Right. Let’s get inside for real.”

“Really, I thought we’re just going to stay here outside,” Kyungsoo said drily.

Chanyeol laughed even more. The list of things Kyungsoo liked about Park Chanyeol was starting to get longer when he added another one to the list. Making Park Chanyeol laughed so just he could hear it over and over again.

Chanyeol held his shoulders as he guided him inside. Being that polite, Kyungsoo greeted the staff with a bow. Chanyeol led him upstairs and into the secluded part of the restaurant. Kyungsoo liked the privacy of the area. There was also a piano, albeit smaller than the one downstairs, situated in the corner.

Chanyeol put down his things at the foot of the table. They sat opposite each other. 

"Are you closed for the day?" He asked with a frown.

"Nope, we just opened up after a two-hour staff break. It will get hectic soon."

"And aren't you going to work?" Kyungsoo looked back at him.

Chanyeol leaned his forearm on the table. He shrugged. "I can spare you a minute. I also have the other end of the promise to fulfill."

"Promise?"

"I told you I can sing again if you come back, right?"

Chanyeol stood up, chair scraping on the floor. He moved to the piano, opened the lid, and sat down.

"Aren't you going to be in trouble if you don't go to work soon?" Kyungsoo asked concernedly.

"Not really, I can start working a bit late when it’s already full house. I know the owner." Chanyeol winked at him.

The audacity. Kyungsoo thought. Chanyeol didn’t have to try that hard to be charming. But okay, Kyungsoo could work with that. Kyungsoo could get used to this, to the feeling of floating and drowning at the same time. The feeling wasn’t necessarily bad, but it could be overwhelming.

Chanyeol’s hands moved over the keys, testing the tune. A waitress came to give the menu to Kyungsoo and to order. Chanyeol regarded Kyungsoo and recommended food to order, while his hands worked on the keys. They seemed random to Kyungsoo’s ears but it was still calming as always.

When Kyungsoo was done with the order and when the waitress finally left, Chanyeol started with a new series of melodies. Kyungsoo immediately recognized the opening note.

River Flows in You.

As always, Kyungsoo could do nothing but stare at him. He propped his cheek on his hand, and he leaned his elbow on the table. He felt like he was back to that night, to the night where there was nothing but Chanyeol and the melodies that wrapped them like a blanket. He felt like he was back at home, his childhood home, where all his current worries didn’t exist at all. The only difference was, Chanyeol was in there too. Chanyeol who was soft as his melodies, Chanyeol who was as beautiful as his songs. Chanyeol who was in his dream-like seance, and Chanyeol who was also present in his real-life. Would it be selfish to want him to appear in every plane of existence where Kyungsoo was in there too? He didn’t mind falling heads over heels again and again with him and his music. Kyungsoo would be lying if he didn’t want this beautiful and talented guy to be with him always.

Kyungsoo jolted up when the music abruptly stopped. He blinked, straightening up. Chanyeol was staring at him again.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Chanyeol mumbled as he looked back at the piano keys.

“Like what?” Now, Kyungsoo was on hyperdrive. Was he looking at Chanyeol weirdly? What if Chanyeol thought it was strange and stayed away from him?

Chanyeol flinched, ears reddening. Kyungsoo supposed that it was something he shouldn’t probably hear.

Kyungsoo was growing even more worried. “I’m sorry, do I make you uncomfortable-?”

“No!” Chanyeol whipped his head at him, eyes wide, and seemingly repulsed at the question. “Never. It’s just that…” He shook his head. “Nevermind.”

Kyungsoo let it go, not sure if he wanted to find out why Chanyeol was hesitating to say something.

“Sorry, I just got carried away.” Chanyeol smiled at him. “I was stretching my fingers. Should we go to the main verse?”

Kyungsoo laughed. “Sing for me then.”

Chanyeol blinked at him, then he shook his head as if dispersing something that Kyungsoo couldn’t see. He focused back on the piano. “What do you want me to play?”

“Can you play anything?” Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow.

“I’ll try.”

Kyungsoo shrugged. “Sing anything you want.”

“Fine.” Chanyeol’s hands hovered over the keys. He started.

“ _ Call it magic, call it true, I call it magic when I'm with you _ …”

Kyungsoo forgot to breathe once again.

After Chanyeol had finished singing and after Kyungsoo had managed to revive his lungs, their food arrived. It was an order for two. Chanyeol changed seats again, sitting across Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo refused to think about how the whole setup resembled like a date.

“So what do you do, aside from working here?” Kyungsoo asked, twirling his fork around his pasta.

“I’m still in school. I’m in my junior year majoring in Music Production.” Chanyeol tore his garlic bread in two and ate the other half.

“You also play other instruments aside from the piano?” Kyungsoo titled his head to look at the guitar case at the food of their table.

Chanyeol nodded. “I play guitar, bass, drums, piano.”

Kyungsoo stressed. Could this guy be any more talented?

“I composed sometimes too.” He added.

That perked Kyungsoo’s ears. “You write your own songs too?”

Chanyeol nodded. 

“Can I hear it?” Kyungsoo tried not to get too excited.

Chanyeol was startled for a moment until his expression shifted into a bashful one, ears reddening again. “Uhm, the demos are back in my studio, we could probably go there next time.”

“Next time.” Kyungsoo echoed.

“Uhm only if you want too…”

“I would love that.” Kyungsoo beamed. Then he immediately chided himself for being so eager.

Chanyeol stared at him again for a moment before his face broke into a smile that Kyungsoo adored. “Okay. So, what about you? What do you do?”

“Same as you. Junior year in Engineering.” Kyungsoo answered.

“Wow. Why did you choose to major in that?”

Kyungsoo shrugged as he sipped on his coke. “I used to fix lots of machine stuff back at my hometown so why not go all the way, I thought.”

“Woah, like Tony!” Chanyeol’s eyes lit up.

“Like who?” He frowned.

“Iron Man!” Chanyeol pointed out. “Like Tony Stark. He’s good at machines too.”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “But I’m not a genius like him.”

Chanyeol looked positively glowing. “You watched Marvel movies?”

“Yeah? Because they are, like, popular and they’re everywhere?”

The tall man pouted. “But my friends are not interested in it.”

Kyungsoo shook his head amusedly as he resumed eating.

“So maybe we can, like, watch marvel films together in the future? Since both of us are into it?”

Kyungsoo choked on his pasta. He covered it with a cough.  _ Woah, Woah,  _ First there’s next time, now, there’s future. What was this? But the fact that Chanyeol was going to stick around in the distant future made his heart flutter. He would like that very much.

“...Or maybe not…? Are you okay?”

“No,” Kyungsoo cleared his throat, gulping down a glass of water ignoring the straw. He put the glass on the table. He swallowed. “I meant I’m okay. And I meant no, I’d like to watch future marvel films with you.”

The eagerness, Kyungsoo, the eagerness. Why couldn’t he just step on the brake pedal for once?

But Chanyeol looked like he was literally bouncing in his seat in delight, so maybe it wasn’t that bad.

“So what do you think?” Chanyeol continued conversely. “Do you think Iron Man suits are really possible in real life? You’re a future engineer.”

Kyungsoo was silently glad that the topic veered on a lighter subject that wouldn’t make his heart drop. He snorted. “First off, you need to build the powerhouse of the suit. The suit wouldn’t work at all if you don’t have it.”

“The arc reactor.” The musician piped in. “Wait, how about that? Do you think we can actually build the arc reactor?”

Kyungsoo snorted again. “No, because none of us is Tony Stark.”

Chanyeol threw his head back, laughing. Kyungsoo gave himself a pat on the shoulder. Job well done, punk.

“No, but seriously,” Kyungsoo continued. “In layman’s terms, the arc reactor is like an entire nuclear power plant fit into that donut size casing in Tony’s chest. Tony had not only managed to build unlimited sustainable energy on his palm but also managed to prevent the arc reactor from obliterating him on the spot. It’s either he’d be incinerated or freeze to death. But none of those happened, and theoretically speaking, it’s not possible when there’s gazillion energy at your fingertips.”

For a second, Kyungsoo worried that he had spoken too much, he could pretty get worked up on things, and bored people easily. But when he looked up, Chanyeol was looking at him as if he had already discovered how to build the Iron Man suit.

Then their conversation navigated through other topics. Kyungsoo told him why he wasn’t able to drop by at the restaurant sooner. His two-way life between uni and his part-time job, and his upcoming tests and constant worry about losing his scholarship. All throughout it all, Chanyeol was attentive to everything he had said. He even assured Kyungsoo that he was doing well with his studies, even though they didn’t know each other that well. Regardless, it was comforting for Kyungsoo.

“So, that’s my boring life,” Kyungsoo concluded.

“Ehhh,” Chanyeol seemed to disagree. “My ex-boyfriend once said that I have a boring life because all I do is music.”

_ Fuck, Fuck. Fuck.  _ This changed things and all bets were off. Kyungsoo didn’t want to be more hopeful than he already was but fuck it, Chanyeol was into guys too. Screw the knit-picking and dissecting. He would dive in headfirst into the ocean in a heartbeat if Chanyeol asked him to.

But of course, all Kyungsoo managed to say was, “Your ex-boyfriend’s an asshole. You’ve got talent, better not waste it.”

Chanyeol smiled at that. So, Chanyeol launched on his story about his love and passion for music, how he had planned before to audition as an idol but had backed out at the last minute. And now, he was just content on producing and making his own music. Kyungsoo learned that he could rap too, and honestly at this point, Kyungsoo had to stop being surprised on things that Chanyeol could do when it had been established in the beginning that the guy was talented. He told him about his favorite songs and singers.

Kyungsoo was just so happy at that moment that he couldn’t help but join in the singing when Chanyeol sang a part of Billionaire by Travis McCoy. He tried to harmonize with Chanyeol’s voice just to test out his theory.

The result startled them both but Chanyeol was evidently more surprised. Chanyeol got startled so badly that the whole table rattled when Chanyeol’s knee jerked the leg of the table. Kyungsoo was the first one to recover as he held the table in place in one hand, and caught the wine glass that had almost fallen down from the table on another hand.

He was right after all. Their voices meshed well together.

“Oh my god, Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol choked, “you can sing.”

“Well, I occasionally hold a concert in the shower room at the dorms when I’m sure that I’m alone. I got some practice.”

“No, Kyungsoo, you’ve got the voice.” Chanyeol insisted. 

Kyungsoo was bashful. “My voice is okay.”

“Mom!” Chanyeol suddenly shouted. He looked behind Kyungsoo. “Did you hear that? Please tell Kyungsoo that he has a great voice, and it isn’t just an okay voice.”

Kyungsoo’s head whipped in the same direction Chanyeol was looking at.

A woman stood at the doorway leading to their booth. She wore an apron, and her hands were in the front pockets of her apron. It was the woman behind the cash register when Kyungsoo had paid for his food that one fateful night he had gotten stood up on his date.

Kyungsoo was mortified. “M-mom…?”

Chanyeol grinned at him as he stood up, oblivious to Kyungsoo's reaction. Kyungsoo stood up too. The tall man walked towards his mother and pulled her closer to their table.

“Hi, Kyungsoo, it’s nice to finally know your name at last.” Chanyeol’s mom smiled at him. It was as warm as Kyungsoo remembered it.

“I’m so glad you came back.” Mrs. Park added.

“H-hi.” Kyungsoo bowed low. “It’s nice to meet you...again. I’m so sorry for not dropping by sooner even though I said that I would.” He was embarrassed.

“It’s okay.” Mrs. Park assured him. “And you’ve got a great voice, Kyungsoo.”

Kyungsoo was even more embarrassed. He bowed again. “Thank you.”

“See, I told you!” Chanyeol grinned at him. Then he faced his mother. “Did you just come from the farmer’s market?”

Mrs. Park nodded. “I was hoping I could get some fresh crabs but luck wasn’t one me today. I’ll come back tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll go with you tomorrow then,” Chanyeol said. “My classes won’t start until in the afternoon.”

“Alright,” Mrs. Park said. “I won’t interrupt you further.” She patted Chanyeol’s arm and smiled again at Kyungsoo before leaving them.

Kyungsoo sagged in his chair. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me that your mother was here all this time. I could have greeted her properly!”

Chanyeol chuckled amusedly as he sat on his chair “She wasn’t here earlier so I couldn’t introduce you to her. Then she came in just in time you surprised the heck out of me with your voice.”

“Is there anything else I have to know? I couldn’t afford to be this surprised every time you’re going to drop something like that.” Kyungsoo huffed.

“Oh, my mom owns the restaurant,” Chanyeol stated, gesturing in the general direction.

“You own the restaurant.” Kyungsoo echoed.

“No, my mom is. I told you I know the owner.”

Kyungsoo half-heartedly glared at him and threw the unused napkin in his direction. Chanyeol caught the napkin smoothly and laughed some more.

“Please go to the studio with me next time, Kyungsoo, your voice deserves to be recorded and preserved.”

“Whatever,”

“Please.”

“Fine.”

He would dive in headfirst into the ocean in a heartbeat if Chanyeol asked him to, remember?

“I had fun,” Chanyeol spoke up when he walked Kyungsoo to the door of the restaurant. He was dressed in a waiter’s uniform. Though his hair wasn’t gelled up this time, and his jet-black hair covered his forehead. It was wavy and almost disheveled. He looked softer. They had to end their night when Chanyeol had to help in the restaurant. The customers were picking up and the staff needed extra hands. It was something that Kyungsoo understood anyway.

They were on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. It was dark outside. 

Kyungsoo held unto the straps of his backpack. “I had fun too.”

“Text me okay?” Chanyeol said. “Tell me when you’re available.”

Before going downstairs, they had exchanged numbers if they had planned on jamming in Chanyeol’s studio and to watch Marvel movies in the future. Kyungsoo bit his lip, refraining from smiling too much. 

“Okay, you too, call or text me, whatever,”

Chanyeol beamed.

“Go back inside,” Kyungsoo nudged his head in the direction of the restaurant.

Chanyeol nodded and walked backward. “Be safe on your way, Kyungsoo.”

“Yeah, look where you’re walking!”

“Yeah, okay-” Chanyeol tripped at the steps of the restaurant and almost lost his balance.

“Hey! You alright?” Kyungsoo stilled a few feet away from him.

“Yeah, I’m good!” Chanyeol called out in assurance. “Go!” He waved at Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes and turned around. A smile broke on his face, like a flower in full bloom.

They texted almost every day.

Kyungsoo had been the first one to text him, telling him that he had gotten home fine after they had dined in Chanyeol's restaurant. He still refused to term what they had as a date even if all the food they had eaten was on the house. They just hung out and had fun, and Kyungsoo would be a hypocrite if he wouldn’t admit how nice it would be if they would officially go on a date in the future. He had saved Chanyeol’s name as  _ Yeol, _ even omitting the heart emoji at the last second when Chanyeol had peeked over his shoulder to see what his name was on his contacts. Chanyeol, who had no originality, had edited his contact name and changed it to  _ Soo _ from the original Kyungsoo.

And then it spiraled down from there.

They texted each other and talked about the most mundane thing ever, like when Chanyeol sent him a picture of rows of different mini animal stuffed toys keychains hanging on the wall. He asked Kyungsoo what he should get when all of them were just too cute, and the tall man was having a hard time choosing. He even complained that there was no Rilakumma keychain when it was his favorite.

_ What are you, five?”  _ Kyungsoo responded, biting the inside of his cheek to stop himself from smiling. He was sitting on his study table, textbook laid open and forgotten.

_ Help me! This is a tough decision for me.  _ Chanyeol texted back with crying emoji. He sent another picture of more animal stuffed toy keychains. He added.  _ Oh no! There’s more! _

Kyungsoo spotted a penguin keychain next to the giraffe keychain from the latest picture. He typed.  _ Get the giraffe, it looks like you.  _ He hit send.

He added.  _ The penguin looks cute too, it’s like Pororo. I like Pororo. _

_ What are you, four?  _ Chanyeol shot him back.

Kyungsoo sent him an angry emoji.

_ I was just kidding. Please forgive me, Soo-yah. _

Kyungsoo was really grateful that he had no roommate. His cheeks hurt from smiling too much.

It was quite alarming, honestly. How they were so different from each other in so many ways, yet they were also a perfect fit at the same time? Chanyeol used a lot of exclamation points at texts to express his enthusiasm. Meanwhile, Kyugsoo was content in using a period at the end of his message. His answers were borderline laconic, especially if Chanyeol had asked him with a question answerable by yes or no. Meanwhile, Chanyeol would add an almost paragraph-long explanation as to why he had answered yes or no. The tall man would fill up most of their conversations in their video chat, while Kyungsoo would mostly listen more and chimed in his opinions once in a while. But it was okay, Kyungsoo liked to listen to Chanyeol's voice all the time. His deep voice was consoling after a long day at school and at his part-time job.

Kyungsoo was a bit surprised to see Sehun in the cafeteria of their university one afternoon since Sehun was studying in another university.

"I hope you don't mind him joining us for lunch, Kyungja." At least Baekhyun sounded apologetic for making Kyungsoo the third wheel with them.

"It's fine." Kyungsoo shrugged, plopping down on the seat across the couple. He didn't mind Sehun's company either, he was a nice person to hang out with. Besides, Chanyeol had spammed him with texts since last night. Kyungsoo hadn't been able to reply because he had already fallen asleep and he had classes this morning. So he would just reply to Chanyeol's messages to keep him company if the idiot lovebirds in front of him got lost in their own little world.

Thankfully, he had warned Chanyeol about his habit of replying so late when his schedule was hectic. Chanyeol had been nothing but understanding, but also it didn't mean that he would stop texting Kyungsoo round the clock. In natural circumstances, Kyungsoo would be annoyed with his spamming, but because it was Chanyeol he would tolerate it. 

"How did you get in here?" Kyungsoo asked Sehun. "It's hard to pass through the security gate if you're not from here."

"Back gate." Sehun smiled wickedly at him.

"Do I have to know how you managed to get the keys? Back gates are usually locked." Kyungsoo's eyebrow rose.

"Probably not?" Sehun said. "But involves a lot of bribing." 

Nonetheless, Kyungsoo was impressed.

"Aren't you going to buy your lunch?" Sehun nudged his head at the queue of students buying food in one area.

"He's got packed lunch, babe." Baekhyun chimed in. "And I tell you, his cooked food is just the best. He could be a chef!"

"Don't exaggerate, Baek. Sehun might expect too much." Kyungsoo said. "I can share my food with you if you want."

"He's just being humble," Baekhyun whispered to Sehun as Kyungsoo pulled out his packed lunch and his phone from his bag.

He opened the lid of his Tupperware and pushed it to the couple's direction. The couple eagerly picked bits of his food. Kyungsoo busied himself with his phone and texted Chanyeol.

Chanyeol immediately replied with too many emojis. There were always too many when it came to Chanyeol.

_ How are you still able to spam me? Don’t you have class?  _ Kyungsoo typed.

_ I do but if it’s you I can up my multi-tasking skills :D _

Kyungsoo bit his lips, trying and failing to hide his smile. 

His hands flew on the screen.  _ Cute.  _

Chanyeol immediately replied.  _ Who? Me? If I am, then you’re pretty and together we’d be pretty cute. _

Kyungsoo snorted a laugh. Oh my god. He shouldn’t be laughing at something so bad as a corny pick-up line. His reputation for being the King of Impassiveness shouldn’t be broken because of something as petty like this.

Sehun and Baekhyun got startled at his sudden laughter that cut off their lull conversation.

“What’s with you?” Baekhyun asked. “You’re scaring me.”

“What’s wrong with his laugh?” Sehun asked. “He’s got a cute laugh.”

“Babe, laughter isn’t in his vocabulary most of the time. He’ll dead stare at you even when you crack the funniest joke.” Baekhyun looked back at Kyungsoo. “What’s so funny?”

Kyungsoo wiped off his laughter from his face instantly. Neutral face back on. “Nothing. I just saw a meme.”

“You understand memes now?”

Kyungsoo stood up. He smacked Baekhyun in the head, making the latter whine in response. “Don’t make me look like a neanderthal-”

“Aren’t you?” Baekhyun dared, mumbling.

Kyungsoo glared at him. Baekhyun whimpered, clinging to Sehun for comfort. Sehun wrapped his hand around his boyfriends’ waist. He looked amused at the whole scene.

“I’m sorry about that.” Kyungsoo smiled at Sehun and sat back down.

“Why are you saying sorry to him?” Baekhyun straightened up, indignant. “I was the one you hit!”

“Shut up,” Kyungsoo said and resumed on his phone.

“He’s going crazy. He’s laughing like a lunatic now.” Baekhyun turned to Sehun. “Thank God, I have a strong stamina to tolerate his weirdness.”

Sehun laughed. “Maybe he's got a boyfriend now? He’s been smiling the entire time he’s holding his phone-”

Baekhyun whipped his head to Kyungsoo. The latter had frozen in his spot and thumb poised over his phone’s screen. He was in the middle of typing a message back to Chanyeol.

“He doesn’t have a boyfriend.” Baekhyun narrowed his eyes at Kyungsoo. “Right, my lunatic friend? Or else you would have told me about it by now.” Baekhyun smiled sweetly at him.

Kyungsoo scoffed. “Don’t be ridiculous. Where will I get one? From your failed blind date setup?”

"Don't point it back to me, ass." Baekhyun pointed a finger at him. "Then why are you smiling so much? Where's the meme? I want to see it too."

"I lost it. I just saw it on the internet."

Baekhyun narrowed his eyes on him some more.

_ You are so many things, Park Chanyeol. Unfortunately, pick up lines aren't one of them. _

_ Watch it, Do Kyungsoo. I'm a competitive type and I'm seeing your message as a challenge. _

The surprise didn't come until days later when Kyungsoo was walking through the university quad on his way to the library.

"Kyungsoo-yah!"

A big figure jumped in front of him, blocking Kyungsoo's way. Shocked by the sudden appearance, Kyungsoo let out an embarrassing noise and tripped over his own feet.

Strong hands held Kyungsoo by his arms. Kyungsoo's hands flew over the figure's hard and huge biceps for balance.

Kyungsoo's wide eyes traveled up and met Chanyeol's grinning face. He wore his usual hoodie. There was a backpack on his shoulders.

"C-Chanyeol?"

"Yeah, sorry. I startled you."

That wasn't the point right now. They were standing awfully close to each other, that Kyungsoo could feel the heat radiating from the other man, could smell the cologne coming out from him, and Kyungsoo got almost weak and dizzy from the sensation.

So, Kyungsoo pushed him back before his resolve crumbled and stayed in that position forever. Chanyeol immediately released him.

"W-what are you doing here?" Kyungsoo asked. "How did you get in? You're not a student here." Oh, Kyungsoo had a sudden deja vu, like something like this had happened exactly three days ago.

Chanyeol smiled sheepishly, scratching his soft and curly hair. "Back gate. My best friend was here earlier. I remembered that you study here so I tagged along with him. I've been going around here in circles for hours, waiting for you."

"You could have texted or called me?"

"I know but I also know that you’ve got classes. I don't want to interrupt you until you're done. I was about to call you but then I saw you."

Cute considerate jerk.

Kyungsoo sighed, trying to maintain his calm and neutral composure. "Well yeah, you're here now."

Chanyeol was smiling. "Yeah, I am here now."

Kyungsoo ran his hair through his quite longish dark hair. "Then what do you want to do while you're here?"

Chanyeol shrugged. "I don't know, hang out with you? I specifically came here for that. But I can't stay that long. I have a 7 pm class later."

"Your schedule sucks."

"I know!" The tall man wailed.

"Come with me then, I know a nice place. Let's make the most of two hours you've got left."

"You make it sound like I'm dying or something."

"No, you're not. You can't die on me."

If Kyungsoo had just looked back, he wouldn't miss how Chanyeol had smiled like his dream come true.

"Wow, it's nice in here." Chanyeol marveled. His eyes wandered around the lush green plants, and flowers rich in colors and blooming so beautifully. Kyungsoo had brought him to the university’s greenhouse.

“I know right?” Kyungsoo smiled up at him. “I love this place. It’s nice and quiet. I totally admire the botany students who are maintaining this. With the weather right now, it was harder.”

They sat on a nearby bench when they had seen one.

Kyungsoo’s phone rang and he fished it out from his jeans pocket. Baekhyun was calling him. He looked at Chanyeol. “Sorry, have to take this call. I’ll be back in a moment.”

“Yeah, sure.” Chanyeol smiled reassuringly at him.

Kyungsoo stood up and walked a few feet away from Chanyeol. He answered it when he was out of ear-shot.

“Hello?”

“Where are you? You’re not in the library when this has become your self-appointed schedule being the total nerd that you are.”

“I didn’t go to the library.” Kyungsoo sighed warily. “Got some things to do.”

“Like what?”

“Do I really have to tell you every single place I’ve been to or every single thing I've been doing? Should I make you my itinerary?”

“Oh my god!” Baekhyun suddenly shrieked. Kyungsoo held the phone a bit away from his ear for a second.

“What? What?” Kyungsoo asked, bringing the phone back to his ear. Half-worried and half-annoyed.

“Sehun’s right! You’ve got a boyfriend!” Baekhyun continued to scream.

And thank God, Kyungsoo had walked away from Chanyeol.

“Will you please lower down your voice?” Kyungsoo hissed at him. “My ear won’t survive this call!”

“You really have a boyfriend, haven’t you?” Baekhyun insisted. Fortunately, his voice dropped a few octaves. “I’m so hurt, Kyungja. Why wouldn’t you-”

“No, I don’t have a boyfriend!” Kyungsoo whisper-shouted.

“Then why weren’t you in the library? You’re stuck in that place for a year and a half, and now you’re changing your ways? Why? Where are you? Why won’t you tell me where you are? You’re with your boyfriend right now, aren’t you?”

Kyungsoo’s head started to throb at Baekhyun’s motormouth. So many questions.

“For the last time, I don’t have a boyfriend,” Kyungsoo said, sighing again. He was tired, and he just wanted to be with Chanyeol. The guy took an effort to be here. It was the least thing Kyungsoo could do. “Look, I’ll tell you when we meet okay later? Not now-”

“Because you’re with your not-boyfriend but a potential boyfriend soon?”

“I’m done with this conversation. Bye.” Kyungsoo hung up. He pocketed his phone and went back to Chanyeol.

When he got back to the bench, Chanyeol was looking down at his phone. Kyungsoo was about to sit next to him when he paused.

On the bench, next to Chanyeol where Kyungsoo was supposed to sit, a small penguin was waiting in place.

To be precise, it was the stuffed toy keychain that he had seen on the picture that Chanyeol had sent him before.

“He’s waiting for you.”

Kyungsoo’s gaze shifted to Chanyeol. He was smiling softly at Kyungsoo.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Kyungsoo asked.

“That means, you should come here already, pick him up, sit with me, and take care of him from now on because he’s yours.”

"You're so dramatic." Kyungsoo rolled his eyes but obliged.

He sat next to Chanyeol. He held the penguin keychain on his lap.

"Look, I've got one too."

Kyungsoo turned. Chanyeol showed him his backpack with the giraffe keychain.

"Oh, you really bought the giraffe, huh," Kyungsoo mused.

"Well, you’ve asked me to. Besides, you’ve said you like Pororo so I bought one too."

Kyungsoo looked back at the penguin stuffed toy. He reached for his backpack. He hooked the keychain on one of the zippers of his bag. This wasn’t his style, really. But one look at how Chanyeol’s face lit up Kyungsoo's entire being glowed too. So who cares about style.

When Kyungsoo had said that he would meet Baekhyun later, it didn’t mean that it was later -as in later that night after Chanyeol had left for his night class. Apparently, Kyungsoo and Baekhyun had interpreted  _ later  _ differently.

He stopped in his tracks when he saw Byun Baekhyun lying on his bed in his own dorm. Baekhyun stared at the ceiling, blowing on his bubblegum, and popped it when it grew into a balloon.

Kyungsoo raked his hair with his fingers. He heaved a sigh. “I’m starting to regret giving you my spare key.”

“Well, I got bored,” Baekhyun said.

“So naturally, you came here to annoy me.” Kyungsoo walked to his desk and put down his backpack on the desk. He turned to Baekhyun. Baekhyun had sat up and was staring at his backpack. He glanced back at his backpack where the penguin keychain had been hanging.

“He gave that to you, didn’t he?” Baekhyun pointed out. He didn’t even need to clarify what he was talking about. Both of them knew that it was all about Not-boyfriend and the keychain.

“Can I just take a shower first before you harass me with your questions?” Kyungsoo asked. “Have you already eaten?”

“I don’t want you to cook we have to talk face to face,” Baekhyun said. Then he snapped his fingers. “Should I order?”

Kyungsoo nodded. “Do whatever you like.”

“I’m ordering Jajangmyeon, I’m craving it,” Baekhyun said in a sing-song voice, whipping out his phone.

Meanwhile, Kyungsoo fished out his phone from his jeans’ pocket and put his phone on the desk too. He went to his small closet to pick up fresh clothes.

Kyungsoo had changed into comfortable cotton pants and sweatshirt after taking the shower. The food had already arrived when he went back to his dorm. Baekhyun had pulled out his small table to lay down the bowls and side dishes because Baekhyun knew how he hated eating on the bed and risked some food stains on it, or putting the plates on the floor and getting them filthy. 

Kyungsoo rubbed his damp hair with a towel as he let Baekhyun do all the work.

“Oh,” Baekhyun began casually as he sat on the floor. “You’ve got a missed call from Yeol.”

Kyungsoo turned rigid. He narrowed his eyes to Baekhyun. “Did you mess with my phone?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “I know your love for your privacy alright, I did not. Your phone just rang earlier and I happened to see the contact name. I was about to answer it for you but it got disconnected. You even changed your password. How can I hack into it? Unless I ask my dear boyfriend who’s majoring in IT-”

“Try it, and you’re banned in this dorm.” Kyungsoo unlocked his phone to check it. There was really a missed call from him. But there was also a text from him.

_ Nevermind the missed call, I just really wanted to say thank you for hanging out with me today. _

There was still a lot of smiley emojis on Chanyeol’s text.

_ Thank you for coming all the way here too. And for the keychain too. Don’t reply. Focus on your class! _

He brought his phone with him and sat opposite Baekhyun on the small table. He put the phone next to him.

“What do you want to know?” Kyungsoo started. Might as well get to the point and get over with Baekhyun’s interrogation fast. He picked up his chopsticks and started eating.

“Oohhh,” Baekhyun looked suddenly excited. “I’m going to put the basic questions away for another day. I like the mystery going on here. I’m more interested to talk  _ about _ you.”

Kyungsoo paused and looked up from his bowl. “Isn’t that why you’re here?”

“No, no, no.” Baekhyun wagged his fingers. “What I meant is, I’m more interested in what you feel about him, considering the cute keychain you have in there.” He pointed his thumb behind him where Kyungsoo’s backpack was. “You don’t like childish things-”

“But he is childish though.”

Baek coughed and spit out some noodles. Kyungsoo wisely pulled his bowl away from the line of fire.

“Oh my god.” Baekhyun tried but ended up coughing again. Kyungsoo poured him a glass of water from his jug. He gave it to Baekhyun.

“What did this guy do to you?” Baekhyun managed to finally ask after downing the water. “You don’t even like me sometimes when I want you to rewatch Moana with me-”

“Probably because we’ve already watched it for the hundredth time? And I’m tired of watching it again and again and hear you belt out How Far I’ll Go?”

“What’s his favorite movie?” Baekhyun suddenly asked.

Kyungsoo shrugged. “As far as I know he likes Iron Man movies.”

“Will you rewatch that movie with him again even though you’ve already watched it a lot of times before?”

Kyungsoo paused. He didn’t like to answer that question. Because his answer was a punch in the gut. He would probably watch it a million times if it meant that he would get to be with Chanyeol over and over again.

Baekhyun was staring at him. Fuck his psychology shit. Kyungsoo put down his chopsticks on the table.

“I like him a lot,” Kyungsoo confessed, “and it was quite scary, to be honest. I’ve already liked him from the first time I met him which is not like me. You know how I don’t open that up easily to people. But when it comes to him, why is it so easy to do? I feel like I could talk an entire year’s worth of conversation with him in a span of a day? I already like him this much when I barely know him. We’ve only met personally thrice, and everything’s in texts or phone calls. Is it really possible to feel like this? Am I going too fast with how I feel? I feel like I might scare him off if I told him about all of this. Is this normal?”

“It is normal,” Baekhyun affirmed. “What you feel is totally normal. And who says you barely know him, you already know his favorite movie.”

“I don’t even know his blood type-”

“Jesus, Do Kyungsoo, are you going to drag him to the Red Cross-”

“-I don’t know his birthday, yet.”

“Then text him or call him to know,” Baekhyun said. “It’s not like you’re going to get married already or something just because you have infinite feelings for him. You have a lifetime to get to know each other and date at the same time. It’s not necessary to have a step by step procedure in dating and let your infinite feelings suffer. It doesn’t have a manual like your machines. Just continue liking Yeol infinitely.”

“What if I get hurt big time because of those infinite feelings? Because I like someone whom I barely know.”

“What do you want to do then? Read his entire autobiography first before dating him? Is that why you’re not boyfriends yet?” His best friend asked incredulously. Baekhyun then sighed. “Listen here, Do Kyungsoo. Your personality is just so uptight, you need to loosen up for once. Instead of thinking of the things that could go wrong. Focus on the thing that makes you happy. Yeol is making you happy, right?”

“My mom misses you,” Chanyeol announced one afternoon when he was busy prepping up the music equipment in the studio.

Chanyeol was renting a small studio. He had told Kyungsoo that the rent on this place was the exchange for his work at the restaurant. 

Kyungsoo sat on the couch in one corner. He smiled. “I could visit again the restaurant some other time.”

“Nah,” Chanyeol said. His back was facing Kyungsoo. “We could just visit my house next time. Mom wouldn’t be able to entertain you in the restaurant because she’s busy and I am busy. I think she’s dying to talk to you again. My sister and my Dad are also curious about you.”

Kyungsoo gulped. “Your entire family knows about me?”

Chanyeol turned to him and gave him a weird look. “Of course, even Toben, my dog, knows about you.”

“You’ve been talking about me with them?” Kyungsoo asked.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes. “Yes, Kyungsoo, I’ve been talking about you with them. I’ve talked their ear off already. You’re a pretty common household topic.” He sat on the swivel chair and maneuvered the mouse on the table as he looked on the screen.

“S-should I get worried about that?” Kyungsoo said faintly.

Chanyeol laughed. “No, they love you.”

How about you? Kyungsoo wanted to ask. What do you feel about me then? But of course, he was still scared as ever so he remained silent.

“Here are my songs.” Chanyeol pulled another swivel chair and placed it next to him. He beckoned Kyungsoo to sit with him. The latter obliged. “There’s not a lot of them here. You can pick whatever you want to listen to. Then after that, you can sing and let me hear your golden voice. You can sing whatever you like.” He gave Kyungsoo the headphones.

Kyungsoo only rolled his eyes and accepted the earphones. He put it on. He navigated through the list and picked a random song. Chanyeol pressed the play for him.

Kyungsoo listened intently as always because it was Chanyeol’s voice. After all, Chanyeol’s voice was part of his entire being that Kyungsoo always gravitated into. He started to hum too when a particular tune caught his attention. His head started to bob against the beat, and his poor heart probably lurched a lot of times when Chanyeol started to rap at every moment in the song. Then three songs went by, and Kyungsoo was still smiling. He hadn’t stopped smiling since he had listened to the first song, and it wouldn’t probably stop for a while as long as he was listening to Chanyeol’s songs. His cheeks would probably hurt from the strain, but it’s not like he could help it. It would hurt but his heart was full.

In the middle of the fourth song, Chanyeol tapped him on the shoulder. Kyungsoo looked at him. Chanyeol held up his phone and pointed at it, his sister was calling. Kyungsoo understood immediately what Chanyeol meant, so he nodded at him. The tall man stood up from his seat and left the room for a moment.

Meanwhile, Kyungsoo continued to listen. He was not a music major but he liked the music too when he wasn’t engrossed with his machines. So he had been making mental notes about some suggestions with tone and voice adjustments. Then the fourth song ended too, and Chanyeol wasn’t still back.

So he picked another song to listen to. It had the title of  _ You Are.  _ He clicked play. The opening beat started.

Kyungsoo was halfway on the song when he realized that Chanyeol had written it for someone. Someone he liked. The lyrics might have been a love letter if not for the melody and Chanyeol’s voice accompanying it. His stomach churned at the thought of it. Chanyeol liked somebody else.

That was also the time that Chanyeol suddenly appeared fumbling for the buttons of the computer. The music abruptly stopped.

Kyungsoo removed the earphones and put it on his lap. He gazed up at Chanyeol with a frown. Meanwhile, Chanyeol’s eyes were wide, as if he was in a panic. He was standing in front of Kyungsoo blocking the monitors.

“Why did you turn it off? I was listening to it.” Kyungsoo asked.

“Y-you’re not supposed to hear that…” Chanyeol stuttered, ears reddening. He was pulling the end of the sleeves of his hoodie because his hands needed to do something.

Kyungsoo frowned even more. “I-I thought I was allowed to listen to anything I like?”

“T-that’s an exception.” Chanyeol pushed the hair on his forehead up to his head. Now he looked frustrated. It was confusing Kyungsoo even more. “I don’t know why it ended up in that folder when I was sure that I separated it from the rest.”

“You don’t want me to hear it because you’re reserving the song to be heard by that special someone?” Kyungsoo said.

“W-what?” Chanyeol sputtered.

“That song,” Kyungsoo tried to be neutral as always, tried to stop himself from crumbling to oblivion because it stung that there was somebody else. “You wrote it for someone didn’t you? It’s obvious. The lyrics are obvious.  _ Boy, I don’t know since when I keep smiling more without knowing. When I open my eyes every day rather than thinking of breakfast, I think of your face and the smile spreads across my face.” _

Kyungsoo was pathetic, his brain was pathetic for memorizing that lines so fast so he could torture himself more.

But Kyungsoo summoned a smile even if smiling did really hurt now and it wasn’t a good hurt anymore. “You should have invited him instead of me, so he could listen to it.”

Chanyeol’s eyes widened. He was back in panic mode. If not for the situation, Kyungsoo would have laughed at how several emotions could pass by in Chanyeol’s face at once. It was endearing and comical.

“W-what are you talking about?”

“Gosh, Park Chanyeol,” Kyungsoo said exasperatedly. “I know you like someone else-”

“And it’s you.”

Thank God, Kyungsoo was sitting down. Or else, his knees would have given out. But his brain refused to believe what his ears had heard.

“I’m sorry?”

Chanyeol was now red in the face. He was looking down. His hands were busy with his sleeves, and his hands disappeared in it. When he spoke, his voice was so soft, faint, and his voice almost cracked at every word. “I like you, Do Kyungsoo. I like you from the moment you first entered our restaurant that one night. For some reason, I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. So I got to witness the sadness on your face, and how you were alone the entire night. I didn’t even know you yet that time but your sadness and your lonesome state irked me so much. Maybe because I am a people’s pleaser so I felt like I had to do something about it. So for the first time since forever, I played the piano in that restaurant for you.”

Kyungsoo abruptly stood up and threw the headphones to his seat. His eyes were wide and he couldn’t breathe properly. He was searching for Chanyeol’s face, searching the genuineness of his words. He felt like he was in a fever dream, hallucination mixing up with his reality. But when Chanyeol's eyes flickered at him through his eyelashes shyly as if he was almost afraid of Kyungsoo's reaction, and when he bit his lip and his dimple showed up, Kyungsoo lost all control with his limbs.

He threw his eyeglasses to the seat, and held Chanyeol's nape, pulling them down for a kiss.

Chanyeol gasped at his lips that made him deepen the kiss. Then Chanyeol was responding back with equal fervor and eagerness. He wrapped his long arm around Kyungsoo's waist, pulling him impossibly closer to the musician. While the latter put his arms around Chanyeol's shoulders.

Kyungsoo sighed on Chanyeol's lips, pulling away a bit. A sigh of relief that Chanyeol wanted this as much as he did. His body thrummed with overwhelming feelings he couldn't identify anymore. It made him feel like crying and laughing at the same time. It made him feel like flying and falling hard to the ground. Chanyeol never failed to make him feel these low and high ends of spectrums, and it felt so good and so right, and Kyungsoo was meant to be in this position, wrapped in Chanyeol's embrace.

Chanyeol kissed him again. Kyungsoo was happy to respond back this time because both of them wanted more, wanted to taste each other's lips again, to properly explore each other's mouths, and let their entire beings ignite with sweet fire.

Kyungsoo was the first one to dare, as he slotted his tongue into Chanyeol's mouth. A deep groan erupted within Chanyeol's throat, another sweet sweet thing that sent vibrations to Kyungsoo's body.

Then they were moving without breaking the contact. Until Kyungsoo's legs hit the couch. He abruptly pulled away, panting, and earning a whine of disappointment from the latter. Kyungsoo smiled at that. He pushed Chanyeol to the couch. The tall guy fell back, sitting down. He pulled Kyungsoo with him, and Kyungsoo straddled him in one swift movement.

"You're so beautiful." Kyungsoo murmured. His hand was on Chanyeol's face, thumb caressing his cheekbone. Chanyeol's head was tilted back from the headrest, his eyes half-lidded, and lips were swollen. "I first noticed your hands, how they were expertly flying over the keys. Then it was your voice. Your voice makes my heart explode." He leaned forward to kiss the side of Chanyeol's mouth. Chanyeol's breath hitched. He whispered to his lips. "And after you finished your song, and when you turned around to face the audience, I couldn't take my eyes off of you either." 

Then Kyungsoo was trailing soft kisses across Chanyeol’s face, mapping this man’s beautiful face with his lips, memorizing every contour, every angle, the edges, and softness of it all. He went to Chanyeol’s jaw, down to his neck. The kiss became heated and open-mouthed. Chanyeol whimpered. He licked and sucked, and was so close on marking the musician’s flawless skin until Kyungsoo felt something wet. He paused. He looked up at Chanyeol.

Chanyeol’s eyes were closed but there were tears streaming down from his eyes. Kyungsoo panicked.

“W-why are you crying?” Kyungsoo asked, “I-is this making you uncomfortable? I can get off-” He was about to get off from Chanyeol’s lap when Chanyeol held his wrist stopping him. His eyes had opened, He looked at him as if he was also staring straight at Kyungsoo’s soul.

“Don’t. I like you here.” Chanyeol rasped. “I am just so happy.” He adjusted to his seat with Kyungsoo still on his lap. He held Kyungsoo’s waist as he straightened up from slouching on the couch. 

“You,” Chanyeol began. His hands remained at Kyungsoo’s waist. “You have no idea what you did to me that night the first time we met, haven’t you?”

Kyungsoo stared.

“Two years ago, I used to perform at our restaurant every Friday night, as a sort of gimmick. And hey, I like showcasing my love for music. Then there’s this one night that I braved myself to perform one of my original compositions for the first time. I thought I did pretty well, but there was one customer who thought my music was so bad he caused a scene at the restaurant. He claimed in front of the customers that he lost his appetite when he heard me sing because I was just awful. I was so mortified that I felt like fainting at that time. My world spin and after that, everything wasn’t the same anymore.

“My family assured me that it’s okay, that what happened wasn’t my fault, and my music was still the best thing here on earth. But I didn’t feel like that anymore. I knew I shouldn’t let the opinion of one person that I didn’t know to affect me that much, but something inside me just broke. Suddenly, my hands wouldn’t stop shaking when I tried to play the piano at the restaurant and here at the studio. I couldn’t sing properly. I couldn’t do proper music for a year and I almost failed my subjects at school because of it. It was the same year I got an invitation to audition to be an idol in an entertainment agency. But how could I audition that time when I was like that and I couldn’t physically perform? So I backed out. I thought that how could I be an idol when I couldn’t even handle criticism of one person? What would happen to me then when I’ve been criticized by the entire nation? Maybe it wasn’t just meant for me and it was a dream that ended up in a trash bin, and it hurt.” 

“Then there’s my boyfriend, he had been nothing but patient to me at first. He had been there for me after the night I first received a blow with my music. Maybe it was all on me that everything went more downhill. But, the words of that man wouldn’t get out of my head no matter how much I tried. It might be trivial for others but it just left a huge impact on me that it had given me nightmares at night. I continued to deteriorate until it affected my relationship with my boyfriend. Then it happened. Maybe it was on impulse and out of anger, he had to say that I was the most boring person on earth because I don’t have a life except for my music. Then I felt like I was transported back to that night at the restaurant with that man and his words; how he mocked my music and how it hit me like a stab of ax to my chest. But you know the thing was, my boyfriend’s words hit me harder than anything because he was someone I had been in love with and he was someone I knew. That was my last straw. I stopped doing music all together. I stopped for a semester in school.

“I think I might have gone crazy for a bit because my mind was blank after my boyfriend and I broke up, and after I gave up music. I couldn’t remember what happened mostly at that time. But I remembered the feeling of too much void in my chest. I went to therapy and popped in some pills. My psychiatrist told me that it was my brain’s way of protecting me from the most painful memories. That’s why my brain acted like it was a jigsaw puzzle with a few puzzle pieces missing.”

“Eventually, I got better with the support of my family and friends. I slowly got backed up again. I started playing the guitar in the beginning. I still remembered how my mom and sister burst into tears when they saw me playing again. I went back to school and catch up on my classes, hence my night classes. I went back to my studio too. My parents had been paying the rent continuously even when I abandoned that place for a long time. Maybe because they knew at some point, after everything that had happened, I would always come back to my music no matter what. Everything was going well and dandy except for one thing, I still couldn’t play the piano at the restaurant. Even though I was okay with my instruments outside of that place. My hands would still shake when I tried to sit down in front of the piano.”

“And then,” Chanyeol exhaled. “You came Kyungsoo-yah. You came into that restaurant that night and you changed everything.” He was now crying, his face contorted, and a fresh batch of tears fell from his eyes like waterfalls. Kyungsoo tried to wipe it with his hands but the tears wouldn’t stop, and Kyungsoo was crying too because it broke Kyungsoo’s heart to see him like this. His heart shattered after learning what Chanyeol had gone through.

“Kyungsoo-yah, you came.” Chanyeol sobbed. “And you were sad and sitting alone for who knows how long, and I hated it because it reminded me of myself at one point. And I didn’t like seeing it. I wanted to lift that sadness off your face and all I could do was music. So I tried again, even though my hands shook at the mere thought of playing that piano again. To distract myself from impending doom and anxiety, I tried to imagine what it would be like if you just smile that night. I tried to imagine how pretty your smile could be on these beautiful lips.” He reached up and gingerly touched Kyungsoo’s lower lip. His crying subsided a bit. “I had no idea how I went through that without missing a single note. I kept on thinking about you as I sang that night because I didn’t want to think about how my hands would shake. Before I knew it, I was halfway through the song and my hands weren’t shaking anymore.”

“And from these beautiful lips,” Chanyeol continued, his thumb never leaving Kyungsoo’s lips. “I’ve been complimented that I have a great voice and I am skilled at piano. Did you know how it meant so much to me? It felt like you managed to erase that nightmare I experienced from that restaurant. I was so happy. From these lips, the excitement of wanting to hear my own songs came. I couldn’t believe your excitement at first. I was surprised by your interest in it. I was sort of skeptic. You’re the first one I invited over here to listen to my songs, except for my friends and family. Because I know they were going to be gentle with me.”

“But you are outside of my family and friends, I was nervous. And when you listened to my songs, there was just a smile on your face. Your heart-shaped smile, so beautiful and genuine, and that’s all I wanted to see. It’s everything for me. I feel like I already debut an album because of it.”

For the first time, laughter erupted from both of them.

“Is it weird to say that I like you so much, and I feel like I’ve known you for a lifetime now?” Chanyeol wiped the tears that almost dried on Kyungsoo’s face. Then he caressed Kyungsoo’s face. The latter immediately leaned into his touch, shaking his head.

“No,” Kyungsoo said in a low voice. “I’ve been worrying to my best friend that I feel too much for you. I like you from the first time we met. I can’t explain it but I feel like there’s always a pull towards you, like I’ve always wanted to be with you.”

That did it, Chanyeol wrapped his arms around Kyungsoo’s waist again. He leaned forward and captured Kyungsoo’s lips. This time, the kiss was messy with more teeth and tongues clashing. Kyungsoo tugged Chanyeol’s hair, earning a moan from the tall man. Kyungsoo liked the sound very much. He resumed the exploration of Chanyeol’s neck and this time he managed to bite and sucked the base of Chanyeol’s neck to leave a love bite behind. Chanyeol gasped, his back arching.

Kyungsoo could feel both of their erections. He rolled his hips just to feel more of Chanyeol’s hardening member. The result was delicious friction, overwhelming, and intoxicating. He groaned at Chanyeol’s neck and repeated the process because he couldn’t get enough of it.

“Fuck, Kyungsoo,” Chanyeol moaned, moving his hips too. “You’re going to be the death of me -ah.”

“The feeling is mutual.” Kyungsoo murmured on Chanyeol’s skin. His hand went over between them to palm Chanyeol’s bulge.

Chanyeol hissed. “Damn it! Be mine, please Kyungsoo. Please be my boyfriend, baby,”

Kyungsoo managed a smirk. “I thought you’d never asked. I’m all yours, baby.”

On the fourth time they had met, they became a couple.

Later on, Kyungsoo learned about Chanyeol’s tattoos on his one arm. He also managed to map his bare skin with his tongue. Kyungsoo was on the clouds, and he had no desire to come back down if Chanyeol would hold him forever.

It was safe to say they didn’t manage to record a song with Kyungsoo.

Much much later when the night had fallen, Kyungsoo and Chanyeol walked down the sidewalk of the busy street of Seoul. Their hands intertwined between them. There was yet again a smile on their faces that refused to disappear even if there was nothing to be smiling about. They weren’t even talking, and just walking on a companionable silence. When Kyungsoo looked up at Chanyeol, he was glowing again, bright as a sun.

“Let’s eat first before we ride the subway. I’m hungry.” Kyungsoo finally broke the silence.

Chanyeol nodded. “Sure, where do you want to eat?”

Kyungsoo beamed at him. “I know a place.” He then tugged Chanyeol’s hand and led the way.

If Kyungsoo had just looked back up at Chanyeol’s face, he would have seen it, the way Chanyeol’s eyes went daze with his heart-shaped smile.

“No way!” Chanyeol said disbelievingly when Kyungsoo led him in front of a Takoyaki Bar. near the subway station

“What?” Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow at him. Then he frowned. “Wait, you’re not allergic to seafood, are you?”

“No it’s not, and it’s not about that.” Chanyeol vehemently shook his head. “It’s just that, this is my favorite takoyaki place.”

“Are you kidding?” Kyungsoo was flabbergasted. “This is my favorite takoyaki place too!”

“Because they are the second-best from Japan.” They said in unison.

Their mouths hung open.

“Do you know, Min Jun hyung too?” Chanyeol asked.

“He’s always giving me discounts,” Kyungsoo said.

“Wow,” Chanyeol said in awe. “I wonder how many times we passed by each other here before when we didn’t know each other yet.”

Kyungsoo could only shrug though, he wondered the same thing.

“Let’s visit, Min Jun hyung.” Chanyeol beamed at him. He pulled Kyungsoo inside.

“Min Jun hyung!” Chanyeol waved at the man behind the counter as soon as they entered the bar. It was a small place with three tables by the wall and an eight sitter bar counter. There wasn’t much customer. Only two people occupying the table in the farthest corner.

“Oh!” Min Jun looked up from his takoyaki maker, holding big chopsticks. His eyes lit up at seeing Chanyeol. “Chanyeol, long time no see! You’re alone as usual?”

“No, someone’s with me.” Chanyeol grinned.

Kyungsoo appeared from behind Chanyeol. “Hello, Min Jun hyung.”

Min Jun’s eyes widened. “Kyungsoo? You two know each other?”

Chanyeol nodded. “Yeah, in fact, he’s my boyfriend.”

Kyungsoo’s heart did a tap dance at the mention of a boyfriend.

“If I just knew you two will end up together, I should have introduced you to each other a long time ago.” Min Jun said when the couple sat on the counter.

“You’ve been here at the same time frequently before.” Min Jun continued. “Kyungsoo was always huddled up in that corner.” He pointed his chopsticks on the table where the two customers were sitting. Then he looked back at Kyungsoo. “You always have your earphones on and didn’t have a care in the world.” The older man shifted his gaze to Chanyeol. “And Chanyeol would always sit here in the counter, talking our ears off. Sometimes, I thought that he’s flirting with one of my staff.”

“That was okay before,” Kyungsoo smiled pleasantly at Min Jun. “But if you caught him flirting with one of your staff one of these days, please chop his tongue off for me please.”

“Hey!” Chanyeol retorted while Min Jun threw his head back in laughter.

“I wasn’t flirting!” Chanyeol defended. “I am a talkative person, it’s natural for me to talk to people in my radius.” He turned to Min Jun. “Please don’t give my boyfriend ideas, it’s our first day as a couple today, and I don’t want him breaking up with me already!”

“Really, it’s your first day today?” Min Jun was surprised. “Your takoyaki is on the house then. Congratulations!”

The couple was more than happy for the free food.

When Kyungsoo had gotten back to his dorm, and tucked under his bed, he received a text from Chanyeol. There was now a heart emoji next to Chanyeol’s name.

_ Do you believe in fate? I was just thinking what Min Jun hyung said, and how many times we had met in the past before knowing each other. It’s crazy to think that we had no idea back then how we’re going to be part of each other’s lives later on. _

Kyungsoo lay comfortably on his back and replied.  _ No. But if there was really something that put us together to meet, I was just glad that it was you. _

Chanyeol sent him lots of flushed face emojis.

Kyungsoo smiled at that, pleased.

“Are you sure you can’t come tonight?”

Kyungsoo could feel his boyfriend’s pout on the other line. He only rolled his eyes as he walked through the corridor after his lecture had ended one afternoon.

“You know I can’t. I’ve got exams. Besides, partying isn’t my thing, and who the fuck organizes a party in the middle of the week? Are you all asking for a death wish from your professors the next day? And you, don’t complain to me about your hangover in the middle of your class tomorrow. You’re still catching up to most of your subjects!.”

“I won’t even drink that much.” Chanyeol insisted. “I just really want to introduce you to my friends since all of them are coming to the party.”

“We can do the introductions in a more sober and less crowded setup. Besides, my best friend would want to meet you too.” Kyungsoo hadn’t told Baekhyun his new upgraded relationship because he knew that his best friend would demand to meet Chanyeol at once. Baekhyun would surely nag. Kyungsoo didn’t like the nagging.

“Fine. See you soon, then. I’m going to my class.” Chanyeol said.

“Okay, bye.” Kyungsoo hung up.

Chanyeol ended up getting wasted.

As evidence of that was Chanyeol’s strings of unintelligible texts Kyungsoo had received last night. He had fallen asleep on his desk, his face smashed to the textbook he had been reading. When he had woken up, he had thirty-plus something texts, and twelve miss calls from Chanyeol.

And then, there was Chanyeol’s last text to him that made Kyungsoo’s heart stopped. It was the most understandable message of all.

_ Soo-yah, I think I’m in love with you. _

Kyungsoo could only stare at his phone screen. Gosh, he wasn’t even that awake yet to deal with this. His brain was still lagging until he had his coffee and then this, he had to see this.

He could only slouch even more in his chair, his whole body was stiff and hurt from sleeping on the desk and in that uncomfortable position. But all his brain could process at that time was, Chanyeol might be in love with him.

Then his phone rang and vibrated that jolted him from his stupor state. For one second, he thought that Chanyeol was the one calling, and his heart might actually drop. Because he didn’t know yet how to respond to his confession, but at the same time, he didn’t want to let Chanyeol think that his feelings were ignored.

For once, Kyungsoo let out a sigh of relief that it was Baekhyun who was calling, and not Chanyeol.

“What?” He answered.

“Kyungja,” Baekhyun said in a raspy voice that made Kyungsoo frowned.

“What happened to your voice?” He asked. “Are you sick?”

“Kyungja, make us hangover soup.”

“You went partying last night,” Kyungsoo stated in deadpan. Why was everyone he knew had been out partying? Was he the only person in his peers that prioritize studying?

“Kyungjaaaa.” Baekhyun continued to whine. 

Kyungsoo was silent for a moment. He wanted him to suffer the consequences for a bit longer.

“What do you mean by us? Who else am I going to make hangover soup?”

“Sehunnie.”

“One of these days, Byun Baekhyun,” Kyungsoo said. “One of these days, the admin is gonna kicked you out in the dorm, and please don’t come here at my dorm with a mattress and unannounced. I’m not going to open up the door for you.”

“Eh? But you are my back-up plan. Besides, you forgot that I have a key to your dorm.”

“Give me back my spare key.”

“Kyungjaaa!” Baekhyun whined some more. "Don't be like a mom early in the morning, my head is still throbbing."

“And who’s fault is that?”

“Kyungja!”

In the end, Kyungsoo ended up going to the communal kitchen to make hangover soup. When he got there, Baekhyun and Sehun were already seated on the dining table nursing a coffee. They stared into nothingness.

Kyungsoo could only shake his head at the sight of them. Their hair looked like a bird’s nest, and in general, they looked like shit. Both of them were sporting hickeys from their exposed necks and shoulders because of the askew collars of their loose t-shirts. They even looked like they didn’t notice Kyungsoo’s presence there with the faraway look in their eyes. He shook his head again and went to the refrigerator to get the ingredients.

Kyungsoo was chopping the ingredients on the counter when he contemplated making additional serving for Chanyeol. He was wasted too after all. But then, he was still living with his parents, so his mother had probably cooked him something. He paused on chopping and glanced at his phone on the counter. But he couldn’t be too sure, could he? What if his mother was out in the market in the morning to buy ingredients for their restaurant? What about his sister? His sister was already working, so there was probably no time to cook in the morning?

Screw it.

Kyungsoo put down the knife and picked up his phone. He dialed Chanyeol’s number. After several rings, his call went to voice mail. He texted him instead.

_ Answer your phone, you little shit. _

He tried calling his boyfriend twice. All his calls all went to voice mail. Chanyeol should be awake at this time. He had a class in half an hour. Unless he decided to skip it like the people behind him. Or Chanyeol might be avoiding his call.

“Fine,” Kyungsoo muttered. He put his phone back in the counter, screen facing down, and with a bit of force that his phone’s screen might crack at the impact. “Don’t answer my call who cares.”

“Who are you getting angry at early in the morning?” Baekhyun finally broke the long-filled silence. “Is it your not-boyfriend?”

“He’s my boyfriend now,” Kyungsoo muttered. He was suddenly feeling annoyed in general. He resumed chopping.

“WHAT?”

“Please, don’t annoy me even more right now. My boyfriend might be avoiding my call.” Kyungsoo warned. “I’m holding a knife. It might fly in the wrong direction and your hangover soup might end up red.”

Baekhyun wisely decided not to push.

“Gosh, your best friend is really scary.” Sehun finally spoke.

Baekhyun snorted. He grumbled. “You only noticed now? I’ve been telling you since day one how scary he can be. Don’t get fooled by his cute smile.”

In the afternoon, Kyungsoo concluded that Chanyeol was really avoiding his calls and texts. He had sent a dozen calls and texts and even had threatened him at some point to answer him but to no avail.

Kyungsoo was frustrated. If Chanyeol was avoiding him like this, was his confession even true at all? Or maybe it was just a slip of a tongue because of his drunken state? More importantly, WHY was Chanyeol avoiding him? It worried and frustrated him all the same.

He looked down at his wristwatch. His lecture had ended a while back and it was his lunch break. Yet, he remained seated in the lecture hall. There were still some students left in the hall.

His phone vibrated on the desk. He eagerly grabbed his phone. He deflated a bit when it was just a text from Baekhyun.

_ Kyungja, let’s have lunch, my treat for cooking us hangover soup. You didn’t have time to cook your own packed lunch because of us. Sorry. :( _

Kyungsoo made up his mind by then. He typed a reply.  _ I can’t. I have somewhere to be at.  _

Then he gathered his things and put them in his backpack. He stood up. He headed out of the lecture hall.

For the first time, he would skip his class after lunch to go to Chanyeol’s university and see him. His one-hour lunch break and two-hour lecture would be enough for his trip. He could still make it back for his next class. He couldn’t skip it because he had an exam.

_ PARK CHANYEOL, I AM OUTSIDE OF YOUR UNIVERSITY. COME AND SEE ME AT THIS INSTANT I KNOW YOU HAVE A VACANT TIME. OR ELSE I AM BREAKING UP WITH YOU. _

He texted Chanyeol. That was Kyungsoo’s last card up his sleeve, the break-up threat, to make Chanyeol stop avoiding him today. Well, he still had some tricks like going to their restaurant, but he was hoping that it didn’t have to come to that, and they would be able to resolve this right now, whatever this was.

Kyungsoo waited outside the main gate of Chanyeol’s university, watching the students go in and out of the gate. Unlike some people he knew, he didn’t want to break into another university.

After another short moment, he heard someone called his name.

Kyungsoo turned in one direction. Chanyeol was running to him.

Finally.

Chanyeol jogged past the gate. Then he went straight to him. He was catching his breath when he reached Kyungsoo. Beads of sweat rolled down from his temple. Chanyeol’s hands were on his knees. Kyungsoo only crossed his arms, waiting.

“W-what are you doing here?” Chanyeol finally spoke, straightening up.

Kyungsoo’s eyes almost bulged out from behind his glasses. W-what - He couldn’t believe this guy. Was he going to pretend like he hadn’t texted Kyungsoo something big and heart-dropping? Was he going to pretend like he wasn’t avoiding Kyungsoo’s calls and texts as if nothing had happened?

That was when Kyungsoo lost his patience. He kicked Chanyeol at the back of his knee. Chanyeol yelped in surprise, and he ended up kneeling on the ground on one knee.

“Baby-” Chanyeol tried to say.

“Don’t you dare call me that, ass,” Kyungsoo growled down at him. Damn, despite the allure of Chanyeol’s height, it was sometimes nice to be the bigger person literally for a change. Especially, right now that he was really pissed off. “I called and texted you! You didn’t answer to the single one of them.”

“I’m sorry!” Chanyeol remained in his position and tried to look smaller. He couldn’t look at Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo’s hands balled into fists. “Is that all you’re gonna say, I’m sorry? You better choose your next words carefully, Park.”

“I got scared, okay!” Chanyeol wasn’t still looking at him. “I texted you something last night while I was drunk. Then when I woke up the next morning and read a text with no recollection of sending it, it scared me.”

“So you’re telling me that you’re probably not the one who sent it?’

“No! I’m sure it was me. My phone’s got a password, I’m the only one who knows it.”

“What’s scaring you then?”

“My feelings for you and how you’re going to react to it.”

Kyungsoo waited.

Chanyeol continued as he finally looked up at Kyungsoo. “I’m scared that I might just confuse love into something as gratefulness. You’re the one who helped me overcome my trauma after all. And I don’t want that confusion to lead to a misunderstanding that would just break us apart.”

“And so? Are you still confused until now?”

“That’s also the reason why I avoided your calls because I have to make sure that I have it right before we talk. That would lead to the next thing I’m scared of, your reaction to it.”

Chanyeol exhaled. “I’m in love with you, Do Kyungsoo. I’m sure of it. The fact that I couldn’t think of anyone else to be with except for you, that I am always thinking my future with you in it, that I am always planning my future with you in it. We just met three weeks ago for fuck’s sake and I’m already feeling this way. I’m scared that I’m going too fast for you, that I’m going too strong for you, that this thing I feel for you might overwhelm you, scare you, or pressure you, and you’ll end up staying away from me. But this is how I feel and I have no control over it. All I know is that I love you. I want to be with this person who makes me into a better person, and that’s you. You don’t have to answer me right away. I’m going to wait, be it next year or in the next few years. Just, just let me love you...”

“You’re going to love me even though I might not feel the same way? Or I might get tired of you the next day?”

Chanyeol winced. “Yeah, sometimes, love is not all about reciprocating. But just letting that person know how important they are to you. You can love without expecting anything in return because it’s just how it is. If you decide that you don’t like me tomorrow, I’m not going to be a hypocrite and pretend that it’s not going to hurt, because it will at some point. I would probably cry over it but what else I can do about it? This is not a fairytale with a happy ever after all the way. Love comes with pain and pain comes with love. But if you want to stay by my side, there will be obstacles for us in the future, but I’m willing to go through it all because it’s you, and you’re with me.”

Kyungsoo closed his eyes briefly. “Gosh, you’ve really thought this far, have you? Why do you sound like you’re already proposing to me? We’ve only been a couple for five days and not five years.”

“Maybe because I’m on my one knee?” Chanyeol chuckled. Then he smiled, “Just let me love you, Kyungsoo, that’s all I ask.”

Kyungsoo surged forward and almost tackled Chanyeol for a kiss. Chanyeol slowly stood up with his lips still on Kyungsoo.

They got startled and promptly pulled away from each other when they heard applause and cheering. They discovered, that they had acquired a handful of a crowd, students who were passing by the gate.

Kyungsoo was embarrassed by the attention. He hid his face at the crook of Chanyeol’s neck. Chanyeol only laughed, wrapping one arm around his shoulder. 

Then Kyungsoo exhaled, preparing himself because he had something to say too. He looked up. “Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol quirked an eyebrow down at him. 

Kyungsoo spoke. “I would dive into the ocean in a heartbeat if you asked me to.”

Chanyeol’s eyebrow almost rose to his hairline in confusion.

Kyungsoo continued. “I love you.”

When they kissed for the second time around, the applause and the cheering was louder.

As Kyungsoo’s eyes closed, Chanyeol’s reaction to his confession was imprinted on his mind.

A mixture of shock and disbelief, above all, he lit up as bright as a sun. It was blinding, as always.

“Are you even sure that your boyfriend prioritizes you too?” Baekhyun asked Kyungsoo as they walked out of their university building. “Why Yeol isn’t coming with you?”

Kyungsoo gave him a look. “Don’t wreck my relationship, asshole. He had already promised to go with his friend before I could ask him to come with us. Unlike you, he doesn’t forget he still has a friend even though he’s in a relationship.”

Baekhyun looked shocked at him. “I don’t forget you!”

“Says who, who’s only gonna text me when Sehun is not available.”

Baekhyuna abruptly halted in front of Kyungsoo when they reached the main door of the building. He looked suddenly concerned. “Am I really like that, Kyungja? Am I really that horrible lately?”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. “To be honest, it’s not like I mind it. I could have my inner peace and I could study more. Besides, I have a boyfriend too, I know how it feels like not wanting to part ways with him. The important thing is you and I are still seeing each other once in a while.”

“Kyungja!” Baekhyun wrapped him in a hug and shook Kyungsoo in his embrace. “I know you are my best friend for a reason. I promise to spend more time with you from now on. I was actually glad you told me about it because I didn’t realize it until now.”

“Get off me, I’m suffocating.”

“Noooo, let’s hug some more.”

Kyungsoo lightly punched him on his side.

Baekhyun whined, pulling away from him. ‘We are having a moment, Kyungja!”

“Let’s go, your boyfriend and his friends must be waiting in the quad.”

When they reached the quad, Sehun and his friends were still nowhere to be found.

“Where are they?” Kyungsoo plopped down on one of the wooden tables that lined the area.

“Babe just texted me they’re on their way. They just entered the back gate.” Baekhyun informed him sitting next to him.

At this point, Kyungsoo had stopped being impressed at Sehun’s back gate’s escapades. He was actually waiting at any moment now when they were all going to get caught by the admin for smuggling people inside the campus, and when also last weekend the couple barged into Kyungsoo’s dorm to hang out because Baekhyun’s roommate was around that time.

“Oh, here they are!” Baekhyun announced waving in one direction.

Kyungsoo followed where Baekhyun was looking. Two people were walking towards them. He easily recognized Sehun’s figure from afar. Then there was the guy next to him.

Hold on a minute…

Why did that tall guy next to Sehun look familiar? There was the familiar broad shoulder, hoodie, and snapback. He couldn’t see his face clearly because it was partially covered by the brim of his snapback.

“Oh? Why are there only two of them? Where’s Jongdae?” Baekhyun mused.

When the two reached them, Kyungsoo finally got a clear look at Sehun’s friend.

It was Chanyeol.

Kyungsoo stared at Chanyeol. He didn’t notice Kyungsoo yet because he was looking down at his phone.

“Where’s Jongdae?” Baekhyun asked. “I thought he’s coming with us?”

“He’s on his way. Don’t worry.” Sehun said. Then he turned to Chanyeol who was still busy on his phone. “Hey, Chanyeol, I believe you haven’t met Baekhyun’s best friend.”

Chanyeol gazed up. Then their eyes met. Chanyeol’s mouth hung open.

Sehun spoke. “His name is Do-”

“Kyungsoo?” Chanyeol’s eyes were wide.

Sehun blinked at them.

Baekhyun whirled around to regard Kyungsoo. “You know each other?”

“Actually-” Kyungsoo tried to say.

“Hi, I’m sorry! I’m late.” Another man came to them. He was panting and obviously ran to get to them.

Kyungsoo didn’t know the man, but it was probably Jongdae that Baekhyun had mentioned before.

Jongdae then turned to Chanyeol. “Hi, babe!” He clung to Chanyeol's arm.

Kyungsoo’s blood turned cold, and his eyes started to see red. He abruptly stood up and gave Chanyeol a murderous glare. “Babe?”

Chanyeol suddenly looked panicked. “No! Baby let me explain-”

“Baby?” Baekhyun exclaimed. 

“W-what’s going on?” Sehun asked.

“Babe, what’s happening?” Jongdae gazed at Chanyeol.

“Stop calling me that now! It’s not helping my case here.” Chanyeol was now frustrated.

“What-”

Kyungsoo was about to charge at Chanyeol. “Are you cheating on me?!”

But Baekhyun held Kyungsoo from the waist stopping from getting to Chanyeol. His best friend knew that he wasn’t thinking straight out of anger, and it was probably wise to put some distance between them.

“Woah, Woah! Hold your horses!” 

Sehun pulled Chanyeol back.

“For the last time, what’s going on?” Sehun exclaimed.

“He’s my boyfriend!” Kyungsoo spat. “But apparently, he’s cheating on me.”

“What the fuck Kyungsoo?” Baekhyun said from behind, and still holding Kyungsoo down. “I thought his name was Yeol!”

“That’s just an abbreviation from his name Chanyeol!’

“What the fuck?” Sehun turned to Chanyeol. “He is your Soo?”

“Yes, from Kyungsoo. I told you about him. Don’t you remember that you asshole?” Chanyeol gritted. 

He looked at Kyungsoo. “Baby, listen, I’m not cheating-”

“Then why is he calling you babe, you bastard! Why is he acting all too sweet to you?” Kyungsoo growled and pointed at Jongdae who was frozen on the spot.

Chanyeol fished out his wallet from his back pocket and pulled out a few bills. He slammed the money on Sehun’s chest.

“Remember the party I went into a week ago?” Chanyeol explained. “The party I got so wasted and confessed that I love you in text. We played Truth or Dare at that time. When it was my turn, I chose dare, and this asshole-” He pointed at Sehun. “Ask me to pretend to be Jongdae’s boyfriend and would call him a babe for a week, if I failed to complete that I would pay for it. I agreed because it was just nothing-”

“Nothing?” Kyungsoo narrowed his eyes on him.

“It’s really nothing, Kyungsoo.” Jongdae finally recovered from his frozen state. “And also, Chanyeol was just actually helping me to make it look like I’m over with my ex, even though I really am not.”

“Why would you do that?” Kyungsoo asked

“My ex broke up with me,” Jongdae said, “and I was really hurt because he doesn’t like me anymore but I still am. He was at the party too that time, so I just wanted to show my ex that I wasn’t that pathetic who’s still into him by announcing that I have a boyfriend, and that’s Chanyeol. There were only a few people who joined Truth or Dare so my ex wouldn’t get a whiff of it that easily. Besides, he didn’t stay that long there anyway. Chanyeol was just really a good friend helping me out. I thought it was hitting two birds with one stone. Chanyeol would carry out Sehun’s dare, and he could also pretend to be my boyfriend for the sake of a show to my ex. And I was just diligently following the dare. I was sort of worried Chanyeol would pay up for it if I didn’t follow. We didn't really do any boyfriend thing aside from calling Chanyeol babe.”

“I couldn’t believe it,” Sehun regarded Chanyeol again. “Why didn’t you tell me that your boyfriend is Do Kyungsoo. I wouldn’t ask you that kind of dare if I only knew.”

“I told you!” Chanyeol whined. “I told you at the party repeatedly. I thought you already knew it!”

“Oh, maybe I was too drunk to remember it?” Sehun wondered. Chanyeol whacked him in the head.

“Ow!” Sehun rubbed his head. “I’m sorry, okay? I had no idea. And my brain chose not to function that time.”

Baekhyun finally loosened his hold from Kyungsoo when he calmed down a bit. Though, he was still giving Chanyeol a cold look. ”Hey, you.”

Chanyeol suddenly looked attentive at him. “Yes, baby?”

“Did you ever think of telling me all about this dare if I didn’t find out now?”

“Yes, but remember the next morning after the party, we’re too occupied with our own-” Chanyeol air-quoted the word own. “-issues that time to think about that stupid dare. And then when I remembered it again, I just decided to tell you when we met again. I thought that when we meet the dare would be over and it wouldn’t be this complicated to explain. I didn’t realize that we would, like, meet right now when the dare wasn’t yet over. The dare was supposed to end tomorrow.” Then he turned to Baekhyun. “So he is Kyungja you kept mentioning before?”

Baekhyun nodded. “Yes, he is my Kyungja.”

Kyungsoo raked his hands through his hair. “I can’t believe all of you.”

“Yeah, me neither. Chanyeol chimed in. “I almost lost a boyfriend.”

“Maybe next time,” Jongdae tried to suggest. “Let’s use proper names to avoid further confusion.”

Then just like that, they were laughing.

“Baby, are we okay now?” Chanyeol asked Kyungsoo. “Can I come to you now? You’re not mad at me anymore?”

Kyungsoo snorted but held up his hand. Chanyeol bounced on his feet as he went to Kyungsoo. He immediately wrapped Kyungsoo into a hug. Kyungsoo put his arms around his waist.

Kyungsoo’s cheek was pressed to the soft fabric of Chanyeol’s hoodie.

“You’re scary when you get mad,” Chanyeol said.

Kyungsoo only snorted. But he nuzzled his cheek on Chanyeol’s hoodie because it was just too soft and comforting. Chanyeol’s cologne was comforting too. He mumbled. “But I don’t like fighting with you.”

“Me too.” Chanyeol’s hug tightened.

“Now, everything is settled.” Baekhyun clapped his hands. “Can we go to the karaoke now?”

“Yep, we’ve got Chanyeol’s money to spend,” Sehun said.

As they walked through the quad with Kyungsoo’s arms around Chanyeol’s waist, and as the latter three led the way, Kyungsoo’s mind wandered back to that night again. When all he could think that night was how he had regretted agreeing to his best friend’s scheme.

Because right now, that regret was long gone.

And that night  had been unforgettable for all different reasons now.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!!


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